Blind TL;DR Edition No. 2: Week Ended Nov. 19, 2021
Blind TL;DR helps you stay on top of what shaped the tech industry this week in about 3 minutes. Keep tabs on the latest with insights straight from the newsmakers—technologists like you.
Oops, I forgot to tell you
California’s attorney general fined Amazon $500,000 (about two L5s’ one-year total compensation) for not sharing COVID-19 case numbers with its warehouse workers. Now, Earth’s Best Employer must notify staff of any new coronavirus cases within one day and share the exact number of cases in the workplace.
“500k? Should’ve been 500 billion,” said a verified Apple professional in reaction to Amazon’s fine. Read more reactions on Blind.
Can I pay you back later?
“Buy now, pay later” companies like Affirm or Square let shoppers finance their purchases at checkout. The new payment option has become a popular alternative to credit cards, especially as companies sweeten the deal with zero or low-interest rates. The startup Aplazo raised $27 million to bring buy now, pay later to Mexico.
Learn more about how buy now, pay later works on Blind. Some people think the industry could be a real threat to the payment giants PayPal and Stripe.
No Instacart IPO this year
The grocery delivery app Instacart won’t be going public this year after all. The on-demand company, which recently poached a Facebook executive to be its CEO three months ago, says it wants to focus on developing services for grocery retailers first.
Instacart grew its revenue to $1.5 billion last year and a $40-billion valuation. Check out how Blind users ranked it on a list of companies with the best equity packages.
Apple fakes out employees again
Some companies have given up on setting a return-to-office date, but not Apple. This week, the MacBook-maker put everyone on notice to get back to the office on Feb. 1. Workers will work out of the office one or two days a week in a “hybrid work pilot.” According to the memo, employees can now work up to four weeks remotely every year.
See which companies might follow Apple’s lead on Blind.
Tesla moves ahead in Austin
We’d forgive you if you thought Tesla CEO Elon Musk was bluffing when he said he’d start making his famous electric cars in Austin. The state of Texas is now reviewing plans for the carmaker’s manufacturing facility called Gigafactory Texas, which Tesla says it’ll complete on Dec. 31, 2021.
Find out where these Tesla employees are renting in Austin on Blind.
Job applications have changed
Contrary to what you may have heard: The holiday season could be a good time to switch jobs. Job searches can take two or three months, so you may want to start sooner than later.
One thing on job applications you might not recognize this time around: proof of COVID-19 vaccination. Some companies’ job descriptions are now asking candidates to be fully vaccinated and provide their vaccine status. According to a recent Blind survey, 22% believe this requirement is discrimination.
Find out how the industry is reacting to the new trend on Blind.
Be a newsmaker
Make an impact with your work. The top companies in the headlines are using Blind to grow. Find out how you can get an offer from some of the most innovative and fast-growing companies.
