Last week in technology and startup news, Seattle-based carbon removal startup Nori announced its shutdown after operating for seven years and raising $17.25 million from investors. Microsoft named former General Electric CFO, Carolina Dybeck Happe, as its new executive vice president and chief operations officer. In Seattle, coffee culture is serious business, with where and how you buy your coffee saying a lot about you. There has been an increase in cyberattacks against K-12 schools, with a recent incident affecting a school district south of Seattle. Manny Medina has stepped down as CEO of Outreach, a Seattle-based sales automation software company he helped start a decade ago.
Highline Public Schools, a district south of Seattle, canceled classes due to a cyberattack, highlighting the increasing frequency and severity of cybersecurity attacks on schools. Oracle announced a strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services to further integrate its database offerings and cloud infrastructure with AWS’s platform. The Port of Seattle faced a cyberattack, and some of its data may be at risk of being posted online after the organization refused to pay the ransom demanded by the criminals responsible. New Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol began his first day on the job, and Amazon is lowering prices on thousands of grocery items while introducing a new private label food brand called Amazon Saver.
Overall, the past week in technology and startup news has been filled with significant developments in the Seattle area and beyond. With Nori shutting down and Microsoft appointing a new executive, there have been changes in leadership in the technology sector. The importance of cybersecurity has been highlighted by the increase in cyberattacks on schools and organizations such as the Port of Seattle. Partnerships between tech companies like Oracle and Amazon Web Services demonstrate the ongoing collaboration in the industry. At the same time, changes in leadership at companies like Outreach and Starbucks show the dynamic nature of the startup and corporate worlds. Finally, Amazon’s initiatives in the grocery sector, including price reductions and a new private label food brand, reflect the company’s ongoing innovation and focus on customer experience.
