Magazine

The Business Issue

July/August 2016

Rapid advances in technology are transforming businesses and our economy in complex, often surprising ways.

Read the issue

Letter from the editor

What the Great Economists Would Have Thought of a Universal Basic Income

Features

Categorized in 17036
Dear Silicon Valley: Forget Flying Cars, Give Us Economic Growth
Companies taking advantage of amazing new digital technologies dominate our list of 50 Smartest Companies. But despite impressive advances in artificial intelligence and automation, the economy remains in a troubling slowdown.
Categorized in Biotechnology and health
23andMe Sells Data for Drug Search
The consumer genetic-testing startup has amassed one of the world’s largest databases of DNA. Now it is sifting through it for clues to new drugs.
Categorized in 17036
Toyota Makes a U-Turn on Autonomous Cars
The world’s largest automaker is finally getting serious about self-driving technologies.
Categorized in 17036
A Chinese Rival Beats Uber at Its Own Game
Jean Liu explains how her ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing is besting Uber in China and why data is its biggest asset.
Categorized in 17036
24M’s Batteries Could Better Harness Wind and Solar Power
The startup’s cheaper way to make lithium-ion batteries could make it cost-effective to store energy from renewable sources.
Categorized in 17036
Before PCs Vanish, Microsoft Fights for Relevance in the Cloud
Under Satya Nadella, the software giant hopes to survive by overturning the way it has always done business.
Categorized in 17036
Bosch’s Survival Plan
An old-school manufacturer is building smart factories to remain globally competitive.
Categorized in 17036
Intel Outside as Other Companies Prosper from AI Chips
The world’s leading chip maker missed a huge opportunity in mobile devices. Now the rise of artificial intelligence gives the company another chance to prove itself.

Also in this issue
- Basic Income: A Sellout of the American Dream
  Schemes for giving everyone a guaranteed income are gaining momentum in Silicon Valley and throughout Western Europe. It’s a great idea, until you look closely.
  Categorized in 17036
- The All-American iPhone
  Donald Trump has said Apple should make phones in the United States. Last summer, we explained how that would affect the device’s price.
  Categorized in Policy
- The Unbelievable Reality of the Impossible Hyperloop
  Startup Hyperloop Technologies has started shooting magnetically levitated capsules along a track in Las Vegas to show off a radical idea for the future of freight and mass transit.
  Categorized in 17036
- Oculus Rift Is Too Cool to Ignore
  Now that virtual reality has arrived (again), it’s here to stay—even if it’s not clear exactly how we will end up using it.
  Categorized in 17041
- The Best and Worst Internet Experience in the World
  Mobile innovation in China is flourishing, bringing new conveniences to daily life. Is that happening despite or because of the country’s strict controls on online expression?
  Categorized in 17036
- Why Startups Are Struggling
  Even amid the venture capital boom of the past few years, entrepreneurs are finding it harder to build big, enduring companies. What does this mean for the future of innovation?
  Categorized in Silicon Valley
- Go Inside TriAlpha, A Startup Pursuing the Ideal Power Source
  A startup in California has raised $500 million to chase the elusive dream of fusion power. Is this crazy, or is the company on to something?
  Categorized in 17037
- Why Tech Companies Should Work with Government Rather than Against It
  The former chief digital officer of New York, Rachel Haot, explains why government and entrepreneurs need to work together.
  Categorized in 17036
- Q&A: John Chambers
  The executive chairman of Cisco has become a Silicon Valley statesman, whether he’s promoting the expansion of digital networks or calling for limits on government surveillance.
  Categorized in 17036
- Train in a Tube
  Decades before talk of a Hyperloop, a transportation researcher wondered whether “evacuated tube” ground transport would be worth the trouble.
  Categorized in 17037

Updated

Magazine

The Business Issue

Letter from the editor

Features

Dear Silicon Valley: Forget Flying Cars, Give Us Economic Growth

23andMe Sells Data for Drug Search

Toyota Makes a U-Turn on Autonomous Cars

A Chinese Rival Beats Uber at Its Own Game

24M’s Batteries Could Better Harness Wind and Solar Power

Before PCs Vanish, Microsoft Fights for Relevance in the Cloud

Bosch’s Survival Plan

Intel Outside as Other Companies Prosper from AI Chips

Basic Income: A Sellout of the American Dream

The All-American iPhone

The Unbelievable Reality of the Impossible Hyperloop

Oculus Rift Is Too Cool to Ignore

The Best and Worst Internet Experience in the World

Why Startups Are Struggling

Go Inside TriAlpha, A Startup Pursuing the Ideal Power Source

Why Tech Companies Should Work with Government Rather than Against It

Q&A: John Chambers

Train in a Tube

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