WSJ Tech News Briefing The Wall Street Journal

Many parents have leaned on online games to keep young children entertained and connected during the pandemic. But in one popular platform, Roblox, there are dark corners: In some games, players' avatars simulate sex and "date" one another. Family and Tech Columnist Julie Jargon joins host Amanda Lewellyn to explain the impact on children, and how Roblox is working to more strictly moderate content.
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Elon Musk's internet satellite venture, Starlink, is authorized to send 12,000 satellites into orbit to expand internet access, and it is seeking permission for another 30,000. But rivals are raising concerns about the company's approach. Correspondent Bojan Pancevski joins host Amanda Lewellyn to explain.
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The pandemic threatened to clobber Stripe. Instead, the payments processor became one of the most lucrative businesses in Silicon Valley. Fintech reporter Peter Rudegeair joins host Amanda Lewellyn to explain.
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Apple is set to roll out a feature that would require apps to ask users' permission before tracking them. Facebook has been among the most vocal opponents to the change, saying it could hurt its advertising business. But small businesses could bear the brunt of it. Tech columnist Christopher Mims joins host Amanda Lewellyn to discuss. Christopher Zinsli is our supervising producer. Kateri Jochum is the executive producer of WSJ Podcasts.
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Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are making their way into the mainstream. Some recent developments, including the public listing of the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and a new SEC chairman seen as friendlier to crypto, have some believing that the time is ripe for a bitcoin ETF. Heard on the Street columnist Telis Demos joins host Amanda Lewellyn to explain what that could look like, and how it could change investors' relationship to bitcoin.
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Microsoft's $16 billion acquisition of the speech-recognition company Nuance Communications is yet another sign that big tech is furthering its push into healthcare. Tech reporter Rolfe Winkler joins host Amanda Lewellyn to discuss the opportunity tech companies see, and the challenges that lie ahead.
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