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The move is another sign that big social platforms are shifting towards offering more tools to help their influencers and creators earn a living. Of course, the likely rewards will be somewhat tied to the size of your TikTok following. But these new tools offer a point of entry to affiliate marketing for a whole new range of people, and for existing brands to diversify their channel earnings. We explain all you need to know, below....

We’re at the monthly Downtown Project update in September, a lively affair at the Plaza casino. The crowd has sampled from a sushi platter in the back, and we watch moderator Jude Stanion take the stage. He starts off with a joke: today, we’re making serendipitous connections between raw fish and sticky rice. The notion of serendipity is so ingrained in the Downtown Project’s philosophy that everyone laughs. Serendipity – random connections among people and ideas – is one of the core experiences that Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos and head of the Downtown Project, wants to create in Las Vegas....

That statement was the first time that the Indian government officially stated that Twitter has lost its immunity, although they had pointed out the non-compliance plenty of times before. It seems to have done the trick: Just days later, Twitter’s complying. What Twitter’s Agreeing To Many of the requirements are administrative: Twitter has appointed an interim chief compliance officer, has plans to appoint a grievance officer within a few days, and will set up an office in India within eight weeks, according to a lawyer representing the social media giant....

Let’s be honest, Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter has been a bit of a mess. From the fired employees that were asked to come back to the blue check mark fiasco that cost some businesses billions of dollars, there’s been no short supply of headlines to follow the controversial CEO and his new social media platform. However, it’s not all doom and gloom, as Musk is reportedly planning to add one of the platform’s most sought-after features to Twitter at some point in the future....

Thanks to data from UpCounsel, understanding the funding rounds of the world’s 100 most valuable unicorn companies is easier than ever. With the interactive chart below, you can see who raised what and when, allowing you to understand that building towards a one billion dollar company takes more than a few good funding rounds. However, it’s become a bit of a regular occurrence in the business world, so much so that a new name has become popular for companies valued at $10 billion: the decacorn....

Through VentureOhio, Falon helps advance Ohio entrepreneurship by changing the VC world from the inside. At the Techstars Startup Week Columbus, powered by Chase for Business, Falon Donohue will share more about their game plan to bring more capital to Ohio, accelerate innovation, create jobs, and support more diverse entrepreneurs, on Monday, May 7 at 3:00 p.m. I had a chance to catch up with Falon who shared her story about transitioning from military to civilian life, the state of Ohio entrepreneurship, supporting women entrepreneurs, and offered some VC pitching advice for founders....

Zoom has seen a meteoric rise in usage over the last few weeks given the many shelter-in-place orders throughout the world. Subsequently, businesses and friendships alike now rely on the video chat technology to communicate effectively on a regular basis. Unfortunately, the privacy settings of the popular video chat app leave a lot to be desired and one notable critic is calling them out. According to Zoom, the company has plans to provide all requested information to the general attorney....

AdPushup – which offers a platform aimed at increasing ad revenue through A/B testing – published the post on building their startup office with the hope of helping other Indian startups navigate their way through the process. From selecting a location, to determining the layout of the office itself, the post documents the specific steps through which AdPushup was able to successfully complete their office space in Pitampura (which is located in the Indian capital of New Delhi)....

The latest Chrome update — that’s Chrome 86, for those of you keeping track at home — has plenty of technical tweaks that the average user won’t care about. But it also has new functions aimed at security that any user could really benefit from. Here’s what to know. Get Alerts if a Saved Password is Compromised Chrome already had an option letting users chose to securely save any username and password they want, so that they can load them faster when they return to log back into an online account....

Sure, money helps a great deal when it comes down to feeling good about a current position, but when it is the difference between love and hate, it is rare that any amount of money (within reason) will make up for the worst job in the world. As a result, smart businesses and entrepreneurs looking to recruit will realize the importance of creating a good work environment. The best recruits have their pick of the best companies, and when it comes down to it, they will make their decisions based on which company will be the best fit for them personally....

The Entrepreneurial Transformation of Sin City The rise of Las Vegas as an entrepreneurial hub has transpired pretty quickly. Much of the activity is thanks to Tony Hsieh’s Downtown Project – a $350M fund aimed at making Downtown Las Vegas a place of inspiration, innovation, and entrepreneurial energy. Hsieh himself has poured millions of dollars into the city in an effort to make it a startup utopia. From purchasing 60 acres and establishing a school to investing in medical clinics and fledgling startups, Hsieh has done wonders for this growing entrepreneurial community that’s vastly overshadowed by flashing lights and call girls....

It’s a fast-changing world, and some of the big tech brands have done little to persuade that they’re trustworthy custodians of the well-being of young, developing minds. In particular, Facebook’s track record with the younger generations might be enough to prove that the social media giant should be a huge parenting concern. Despite the fact that a child can create a Facebook account from the age of 13, the service has an appalling history of how it treats younger users, with more stories coming to light all the time....

Workspot is a VDI or virtual desktop infrastructure company (think Citrix or VMware) that supports VDI 2.0, and states that they can deploy an enterprise class solution within 60 minutes on either Macs or PCs. VDIs are commonly used as a security measure, offering organizations a way to securely deliver apps, desktops, and data to mobile devices through a cloud-native architecture. The founding team, Amitabh Sinha and Puneet Chawla, both contributed to the initial development and existence of VDI technology, having worked at Citrix and VMware....

But talk to cofounder Akshay Dodeja, and he’ll explain why you should believe in the allure of gorgeous prints–and what else PicPlum has up its sleeve. PicPlum began when Paul Graham suggested a few startup ideas to Paul Stamatiou, cofounder of the Y Combinator startup Notifo. One was a revival of Picwing, another Y Combinator startup (check out the photos on the Y Combinator homepage). Stamatiou recruited Dodeja, they joined the accelerator’s summer 2011 class, and PicPlum was born....

With previous integrated partnerships with Seamless and OpenTable to give users the ability to order food and book seats, Foursquare’s partnership with Uber through Button’s deep linking now offers consumers with an option to travel to their selected venues, as well. Whether it’s to a restaurant or some other destination, Foursquare users can execute on their plans much more quickly with a simple button to Uber right inside the application....

The bottom line is that there is no better way to get into a consumer’s head than with a catchy jingle. It’s the kind of thing people hum while in the car, on their way to the bus stop, and at work to the dismay of their co-workers. In the age of viral video, jingles have gone from great radio spots to instant web classics. Here are 10 of the jingles youtubers can’t stop watching....

This week Tech Cocktail asked the YEC the following, “What game-changing tech trend should startup founders be on the lookout for in 2013, and why?” Their responses are below. 1. Growth Hacking Every entrepreneur and business has two challenges: they have to build their product, and then they have to get people to use it. Growing traffic, sales and brand awareness is becoming more and more of a challenge. Growth hacking is the latest tech trend that will revolutionize how technology businesses grow....

Turning a small business into a successful one is not easy. It takes time and effort and it takes doing a lot of things right. While it is important to have an idea for a business that others are looking for, it is also important to deliver what the business offers in the right way. There are just as many good business ideas that did not succeed as there are bad business ideas that never had a chance of succeeding....

With the below app revenue boosting strategies, you can easily increase your profits in the coming year. Here’s how: Leverage Rewarded Video Ads Monetization is nothing new for earning app revenue. However, the types of ads you choose to use can increase profits and offer a better user experience. This is where rewarded video ads play an essential role. Rewarded video ads serve up ads in an engaging way, and users are more inclined to watch them to get an in-app reward....

In case you missed it Tech Cocktail is more region-specific than ever. Atlanta, Austin, Boise, Chicago, Dallas, DC, Miami, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, NYC, and San Francisco have gotten their own dedicated pages with their own design, their own posts, and their own trending content from around the web. It’s cool – we agree, but this is only the beginning. Stay tuned for much more to come. As part of the city-specific kickoff party – we will be featuring a healthy dose of content for your region over the coming weeks....