newsnation

Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal : A look at the current state of industrial and service robotics, a century after the Czech play “R.U.R.” introduced the word “robot” to the English language   —  A century after playwright Karel Čapek coined the word ‘robot,’ we finally have the technology …

Annie Palmer / CNBC : What's in store for Amazon during Biden admin: more unions, labor protection and oversight, antitrust actions, privacy and facial recognition regulations, more   —  - Amazon has cozied up to the Democratic Party through donations and its top spokesperson has a longstanding relationship with President Joe Biden.

Follow for the latest updates on Trump's impeachment trial.

Robin Wauters / Tech.eu : Custom parts manufacturer Protolabs buys 3D Hubs, an online on-demand service providing access to ~240 manufacturing partners, for up to $330M in cash and stock   —  Protolabs, the US-based provider of a manufacturing service for custom parts, has acquired The Netherlands-based 3D Hubs …

Microsoft On the Issues : Microsoft confirms it halted all donations of its PAC while it decides by Feb. 15 whether to suspend donations to those who voted against election certification   —  Microsoft confirmed publicly today, as it announced internally on Jan. 8, that it has halted all donations of its PAC …

Conor Hale / FierceBiotech : Philips acquired Capsule Technologies, a provider of data platforms to connect all medical devices and record systems within a hospital, for $635M in cash   —  Philips has moved to acquire Capsule Technologies—a provider of data platforms that aim to connect all of the medical devices …

President Biden had his first phone call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday, where Johnson pressed the new president for a U.S.-U.K. trade deal. 

Arizona Republicans voted Saturday to censure Cindy McCain and two prominent GOP members who have found themselves crosswise with former President Donald Trump.

Officials from the Department of Justice may be considering not prosecuting every rioter who illegally breached the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, according to reporting by the Washington Post Saturday – a move that could prove controversial.

The FBI has arrested a Texas man who tweeted “Assassinate AOC” before taking part in the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol.

House Democrats are working on legislation that would permanently expand the child tax credit to provide thousands per year per child to tens of millions of Americans in the form of monthly recurring payments. 

President Biden appears to have gotten rid of the Diet Coke button his predecessor, President Donald Trump, used on the resolute desk in the Oval Office.

Mike Isaac / New York Times : Uber laid off ~185 Postmates staff, about 15% of the division's workforce; sources: most Postmates execs including CEO Bastian Lehmann will leave the company   —  The layoffs include most of the executive team at Postmates, the food delivery app that Uber bought last year.

President Biden had his first phone call with England’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday, where Johnson pressed the new president for a U.S.-U.K. trade deal. 

Former Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt said Saturday that state coronavirus vaccination plans are “getting too granular,” in turn slowing distribution. 

Cromwell Schubarth / Silicon Valley Business Journal : Globality, whose AI-based sourcing software connects companies with service providers, raises $138M Series E from Sienna Capital and SoftBank's Vision Fund   —  Service marketplace provider Globality Inc. on Tuesday said it raised a $138 million Series E funding that likely added another unicorn to the Silicon Valley herd.

New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang faced a social media backlash Friday after he wrote a column in which he likened the pro-Palestine BDS movement to Nazi boycotts of Jewish businesses.

President Biden has been reversing or pausing some rules put in place under former President Donald Trump this week, including one designed to bring down the price of insulin.

Catholic bishops criticized on Friday President Biden's recent executive order on applying anti-discrimination protections to certain groups, arguing it didn't properly account for religious liberty and furthered "false theories on human sexuality." 

Todd Spangler / Variety : MoffettNathanson survey: 62% of Apple TV+ subscribers were on free offers in Q4 2020, only 30% said they plan to renew at the regular $4.99/month price   —  Apple has said it wants to bulk up revenue from services — including Apple TV Plus, which is just over one year old.

Prince Harry, who is married to former American actress Meghan Markle, has spoken out about the role social media played in the riots that took place in Washington D.C.

West Virginia Republican Sen. Shelley Moore Capito reintroduced a bill Friday that would limit the number of justices permitted in the Supreme Court.

Omar and other progressives have argued that Biden’s proposal does not go far enough to address the current financial crisis.

President Joe Biden surprised the medical community when he nominated California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to serve on his cabinet as Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Brendan Sinclair / GamesIndustry.biz : Activision Blizzard says that it is merging its Vicarious Visions studio, which Activision acquired in 2005, and its ~200 staff into Blizzard Entertainment   —  Long-time Activision Publishing studio will be “fully dedicated” to Blizzard titles going forward; former studio head Jen Oneal promoted to Blizzard leadership's team

Associated Press : Intel says an internal error caused a leak of an infographic related to its Q4 earnings report, which prompted its release ahead of stock market close on Thurs.   —  BOSTON — The computer chipmaker Intel Corp. on Friday blamed an internal error for a data leak that prompted it to release a quarterly earnings report early.

The 24-year-old model took to Instagram on Friday to share several black-and-white pictures of herself posing in a tiny two-piece.

President Biden's executive orders about the economy prove that his administration is "going to keep talking about unity but they don't want to unify behind anything the American working class might actually want," Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, told "Fox News Primetime" Friday.

The COVID-19 vaccine rollout in California – the most populous state in the U.S. – is proceeding at a slower pace than most, if not all, other states.

Reuters : Sources: Biden is looking to hire cybersecurity veterans for top roles, but some observers worry too much value is being placed on public sector experience   —  WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - President Joe Biden is hiring a group of national security veterans with deep cyber expertise …

Thomas Girardi, the estranged husband of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Erika Jayne, can no longer care for himself, his brother Robert claimed in his filing requesting to serve as conservator over his brother.

Actor Tim Matheson took a not-so-subtle swipe at former First Lady Melania Trump while praising her successor Dr. Jill Biden in a now-deleted tweet. 

After the White House declined to weigh in on the filibuster debate Friday, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, didn’t mince words on where she stood. 

Former President Donald Trump was mysterious about his future plans in his first public remarks since leaving the White House earlier this week, but he suggested action is in the works, according to a report.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on Friday lawmakers will wait to carry out President Donald Trump’s impeachment hearings for several weeks, following a brief standoff on Capitol Hill over timing.

As the nation marks the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade and President Trump’s term has come to an end, questions remain about how the former administration had addressed congressional concerns surrounding Planned Parenthood Federation of America’s (PPFA) fetal-tissue practices and its lack of action that ultimately prompted criticism from conservatives.

Friday marks the 48th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, which has resulted in an estimated 62 million abortions, according to one analysis.

Jordan Novet / CNBC : Sources: Microsoft president Brad Smith defended the company's political contributions in a meeting with employees after some questioned donations from its PAC   —  - Brad Smith, Microsoft's president, said the company needs the Microsoft Political Action Committee.

Eric Newcomer / Newcomer : Sources: data analytics service Databricks is in talks to raise a private funding round, potentially valuing it at ~$27B; Databricks was valued at $6.2B in 2019   —  The Andreessen Horowitz and NEA-backed company is raising a private round.  —  Databricks — a data and AI platform …