☕ Astral connections

Comcast Business and Starlink pair up.

June 24, 2024 It's Monday. Comcast Business has teamed up with Starlink to offer its customers access to the SpaceX subsidiary's satellite connectivity, particularly in underserved or rural areas. Tech Brew's Kelcee Griffis has the first look. In today's edition: Comcast Business, Starlink partnership shows demand for satellite service to fill internet gaps Mozilla's Mark Surman on AI and open-source systems Thousands of US auto dealers affected by 'cyber incident' —Kelcee Griffis, Jordyn Grzelewski, Annie Saunders CONNECTIVITY Shoot for the stars Francis Scialabba Comcast Business has struck the first deal of its kind with SpaceX subsidiary Starlink to offer satellite connectivity to enterprise customers, especially in rural or underserved areas. The partnership, first shared with Tech Brew, will allow customers to buy one package that includes access to satellite connectivity without a separate satellite subscription, Jon Friedman, an SVP at Comcast Business, told us. "We have a number of customers that have a need for a complete solution, and that means [at] all their sites, wherever they're located, they want to make sure that they're having amazing connectivity," he said. "Typically, we've got a great solution for the vast, vast majority of them. But every now and again, we've run into a situation." That situation might look like a state government that has chosen Comcast Business as its contracted internet provider, Friedman said. The company's hardwired infrastructure has no problem serving the state capitol building, but that same infrastructure isn't in place to connect the state's park system. That's when a satellite network like Starlink's can fill in the gaps, he said. "You can imagine a Department of Natural Resources site in the middle of a state park, and it's really, really hard to get there. Yet, having wi-fi for the customers is a great solution and a great offer," according to Friedman. "When we think about solutions like that, Starlink is a really great opportunity." Keep reading here.—KG FROM THE CREW Artificial intelligence or artificial hype? We're just two days away from an epic event this Wednesday, June 26, in NYC, all about incorporating AI into your company (and whether that's even necessary). You still have a chance to join us and tech leaders—including execs at Mozilla, IBM, Brex, and Mastercard—to discuss what's real about AI and what's an imposter. Snag your virtual or in-person ticket here. See you there! AI You say you want a revolution Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images For Mark Surman, there's nothing more punk rock than an open and free internet. The Mozilla Foundation president first started working in the media space at the end of the Cold War, coaching activists on the craft of making documentaries before becoming an internet advocate and eventually stepping into his current role. In a recent interview with Tech Brew, Surman attributed his interest in open-source media—including Mozilla's popular Firefox browser and its recent foray into AI—to "punk rock and the peace movement." "The idea that people need to be in control of how they communicate has always been central to me," he said. "I've always worked on kind of just making sure that internet technology falls into the right hands." Surman will join Tech Brew onstage Wednesday morning at "Onboarding Your New Favorite Coworker: AI" to talk about the next technology revolution that's changing the ways we live, work, and communicate. Keep reading here.—KG FUTURE OF TRAVEL Shutdown Hispanolistic/Getty Images Thousands of US car dealers were grappling with disruptions to key services after a pair of cyber attacks hit a major software provider last week. The incident affecting CDK Global caused widespread disruptions at car dealerships across the country, Bloomberg reported. CDK spokesperson Lisa Finney told Tech Brew on Wednesday that the company was "actively investigating a cyber incident" and that "we have shut down most of our systems." Its dealer management system and digital retailing solutions were restored later in the day, but then on Thursday, the software provider experienced "an additional cyber incident and proactively shut down most of our systems." "In partnership with third-party experts, we are assessing the impact and providing regular updates to our customers," Finney said. "We remain vigilant in our efforts to reinstate our services and get our dealers back to business as usual as quickly as possible." Keep reading here.—JG TOGETHER WITH AT&T IN-CAR WI-FI Where are you headed this summer? beach mountains island city Stay connected, wherever you go. Whether you're taking out the prop plane for a remote island getaway or driving to the mountains for some hiking, you gotta stay connected with In-car Wi-Fi. Want the scoop? Perfect! We teamed up with AT&T to give you all the deets on connected cars. Peep the article. BITS AND BYTES Stat: Four in 10. That's how many TikTok users say they get their news from the platform, Marketing Brew reported, citing Pew data. That compares with 37% of Facebook users, 30% of Instagram users, and half of X users. Quote: "We are in a place where the threat of emerging pathogens is much greater than ever before. So therefore, the need for biosecurity is even more significant than it has ever been before."—Suresh Kuchipudi, chair of the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health's infectious diseases and microbiology department, to Grist in a story about how Michigan dairy farmers are managing the confluence of climate change and bird flu. Read: Recycling is broken. Should I even bother? (the New York Times) Watch: Jails across America replace in-person visits with expensive video calls (NBC News) Cryptowards your goals: The simplest way to get into crypto? A platform to empower almost everyone, everywhere to build toward their financial goals? That's Kraken.* *A message from our sponsor. THE PLAYBOOK Let's make a game plan Morning Brew The Playbook is here to help you build your real estate investing game plan. Each newsletter issue is designed to keep you up to date on everything you need to know to be the smartest real estate investor you can be. Subscribe now. SHARE THE BREW Share Tech Brew with your coworkers, acquire free Brew swag, and then make new friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We're saying we'll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 Click to Share Or copy & paste your referral link to others: emergingtechbrew.com/r/?kid=b3968dba Written by Kelcee Griffis, Jordyn Grzelewski, and Annie Saunders Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here.   Guide → What is AI?   Guide → What is 5G? 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