Google's classic "don't be evil" mantra may have been more of a philosophical statement than a practical guideline, but former staff members now want to hold the company accountable for it. NPR and The Verge say ex-engineers Paul Duke, Rebecca Rivers and Sophie Waldman have sued Google for allegedly violating the "don't be evil" segment of the company's code of conduct. They claim Google fired them for organizing worker opposition to controversial projects, like working with the Trump-era Customs and Border Protection. They were supposedly punished for pointing out evil like Google as instructed, in other words.

The one-time employees claimed Google rejected the famous phrase as it was both expensive and leading workers to organize. The internet firm supposedly decided it was better to fire people than admit its approach had changed and give up the "accompanying benefits" that came with its well-known motto.

There are concerns the lawsuit is too vague. What defines evil, exactly? However, plaintiff lawyer Laurie Burgess argued "don't be evil" was specific enough that it could be enforceable. The saying "must have meaning" if it was in the company code and thus binding, Burgess said.

We've asked Google for comment. It has previously accused all of the workers (plus Laurence Berland) of repeatedly violating data security policies by obtaining or sharing confidential data, but the workers and other critics have said this was just a cover for retaliatory action.

The lawsuit won't necessarily lead to stiff penalties. Google settled with Berland over his departure, for instance. There's a lot of pressure on Google to avoid a drawn-out legal battle when the National Labor Relations Board is still investigating the other firings. Still, this could be an important case — even if there is a settlement, it might open the door to other complaints about the company's ethical standards.

Cryptocurrency mining consumes a massive amount of energy, and that's prompting a crisis in Kazakhstan. The Financial Timesreports the country's electrical grid operator KEGOC said it would start rationing electricity for 50 registered miners after their demand reportedly invoked an emergency shutdown mode at three power plants in October. They'll also be the first disconnected if there are grid failures, the quasi-public company said.

The energy ministry estimated that electricity demand has jumped by eight percent so far in 2021 versus the more typical one or two percent. There have been blackouts in six regions since October.

Officials and observers have pinned the power cuts on climbing numbers of unregistered crypto miners illegally generating currency from their homes or even factories. China's war against cryptocurrency may be partly responsible. Energy demand started climbing when mining firms moved from China in early 2021, and it jumped again when China made mining illegal this May. Electricity has been relatively inexpensive in Kazakhstan, making it a haven for companies hoping to make larger profits from crypto operations.

Kazakhstan is trying to compensate for the power shortages. It's asking a Russian energy company to supplement the national power grid, and it will charge registered miners a compensation fee of 1 tenge (about $0.0023) for every kilowatt-hour starting in 2022. Both efforts will take time, however, and this is forcing miners to either scale back or move equipment.

There are also worries the government isn't being honest about its problems. The University of Glasgow's Luca Anceshi argued to The Times that Kazakhstan was scapegoating miners for reliability problems with the country's electrical grid. Whether or not that's true, it's safe to say the mining demand hints at the potential problems for other countries if their local crypto production takes off.

Pinterest will no longer enforce former employees' nondisclosure agreements when it comes to cases of racial and gender-based discrimination, according to NBC News. That's part of the terms the company has agreed to in order to settle the lawsuit filed by its shareholder, the Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island, for allegedly enabling a culture of discrimination. In addition, it has committed $50 million towards increasing diversity and inclusion within the company.

The shareholder sued Pinterest after allegations made by former employees Ifeoma Ozoma and Aerica Shimizu Banks became public. In a series of tweets, Ozoma detailed how she fought for a year to be paid and treated fairly. She said Pinterest responded inadequately when one of her white male colleagues shared her name and phone number to racist/misogynistic parts of the internet. Her colleague reportedly doxxed her after she suggested adding a warning on content from Ben Shapiro, whom she'd described as a "white supremacist."

Meanwhile, Banks said her manager made disparaging comments about her ethnicity (she's Black and Japanese) in front of colleagues. Both Ozoma and Banks said they were paid less than their manager, a white man, despite having similar workloads. 

The Employees’ Retirement System of Rhode Island argued that by allowing those events to take place, executives perpetrated or knowingly ignored "the long-standing and systemic culture of discrimination and retaliation at Pinterest." Thus, they breached their fiduciary duty. Rhode Island General Treasurer Seth Magaziner said:

"We pushed for these sweeping reforms to support Pinterest's employees with a fair and safe workplace, and to strengthen the company's brand and performance by ensuring that the values of inclusiveness are made central to Pinterest's identity." 

As NBC News notes, the fact that Pinterest agreed to release employees from their NDAs reflects the work Ozoma has accomplished since she left the company. She co-sponsored the Silenced No More Act that will make it easier for workers to speak out about racism and harassment in the workplace even if they had previously signed NDAs. California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it into law in October, and it will be enforced starting on January 1st. 

Ozoma and Banks aren't the only former employees who spoke out against Pinterest. Former COO Françoise Brougher also said that she was fired after she told CEO Ben Silbermann that she was being given gendered feedback and was being paid less than her male counterparts. She sued the company last year and settled for $22.5 million.

Samsung has committed to build a chip-making factory in Texas, just as the US starts to push for the expansion in semiconductor production within the country. The Korean tech giant will be investing $17 billion into the new facility, which will manufacture high-end and advanced chips for smartphones, 5G and artificial intelligence, among other applications. According to The Wall Street Journal, construction for the factory is scheduled to begin next year, while production within the facility is expected to start in the second half of 2024. 

The US government has been taking steps towards boosting semiconductor production in the US, following the global chip shortage caused by shuttered plants and the high demand for PCs and other devices during the pandemic. This issue continues to have a huge impact across industries — just this year, automakers like GM and Ford had to suspend or cut production in their US plants due to supply constraints. 

Samsung scouted locations in Arizona, New York and Florida for the new project and also considered Austin, where it has an existing factory. It ultimately chose Taylor, Texas for this new facility due to the generous tax breaks and incentives it offered, as well as the city's capability to do rolling blackouts and providing electricity to certain facilities in the case of power outage. 

Kim Ki-nam, chief executive of the Samsung Electronics Device Solutions Division, said in a statement:

"As we add a new facility in Taylor, Samsung is laying the groundwork for another important chapter in our future. With greater manufacturing capacity, we will able to better serve the needs of our customers and contribute to the stability of the global semiconductor supply chain. We are also proud to be bringing more jobs and supporting the training and talent development for local communities, as Samsung celebrates 25 years of semiconductor manufacturing in the US."

Apple is more than a little angry at NSO Group for developing spyware tools. The iPhone maker has filed a lawsuit against NSO to "hold it accountable" for governments spying on and targeting Apple device users. In addition to punishing NSO, Apple also seeks to ban the surveillance software developer from using Apple products for future research.

Developing...

Add Nintendo to the list of major gaming companies that say they're disappointed with Activision Blizzard following last week's bombshell Wall Street Journal report on the publisher and CEO Bobby Kotick. In an internal company email obtained by Fanbyte, Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser says he was distressed by the allegations detailed in The Journal's investigation.

"Along with all of you, I've been following the latest developments with Activision Blizzard and the ongoing reports of sexual harassment and toxicity at the company," Bowser says in the message. "I find these accounts distressing and disturbing. They run counter to my values as well as Nintendo's beliefs, values and policies."

According to Fanbyte, Bowser notes in the letter he's been in contact with Activision and is in the process of accessing potential "actions." What those actions may entail, Bowser doesn't say. However, there's no mention of reassessing the relationship with Activision like Xbox chief Phil Spencer said was on the table in his message to Microsoft employees. What he does mention is that Nintendo is working with the Entertainment Software Association, a lobbying group that represents both Nintendo and Activision, to strengthen its stance on harassment and workplace abuse.  

“Every company in the industry must create an environment where everyone is respected and treated as equals, and where all understand the consequences of not doing so,” he said in the email.

Bowser reportedly sent the letter on Friday, November 19th, to all levels of the company, including internal development teams like Retro Studios. Nintendo of America later confirmed the authenticity of the email. "We can confirm the content of Doug Bowser's internal email to Nintendo of America staff is accurate," a spokesperson for the company told Fanbyte. "We have nothing further to share on this topic."

According to The Journal, Kotick knew about many of the incidents of sexual harassment at Activision Blizzard and, at times, acted to protect abusers at the company. He also allegedly acted as one himself at times. In a statement to Engadget, a spokesperson for the company said the article presented a "misleading view of Activision Blizzard and our CEO." The report drew an outcry from Activision Blizzard employees who staged a walkout on the day it was published. Some of those same employees have also called on Kotick to resign from his position, an action the executive reportedly said he would consider if he can't fix the company's culture "with speed."

"We respect all feedback from our valued partners and are engaging with them further," an Activision Blizzard spokesperson told Engadget after the Microsoft letter surfaced online. "We have detailed important changes we have implemented in recent weeks, and we will continue to do so. We are committed to the work of ensuring our culture and workplace are safe, diverse, and inclusive. We know it will take time, but we will not stop until we have the best workplace for our team."

The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) has fined Apple and Amazon a combined total of €203.2 million (US$228 million) after an antitrust investigation involving the reselling of Beats products. According to the watchdog, the two companies signed an agreement in 2018 that would prohibit both official and unofficial resellers of Apple and Apple-owned Beats products on Amazon's Italian website. That agreement allegedly contained contractual clauses that only allowed Amazon itself and select sellers "chosen individually and in a discriminatory way" to sell those items.

AGCM said in its announcement that those clauses violate article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. In addition, the watchdog said the agreement restricted cross-border sales, ultimately limiting buyers' options and depriving them of the discounts typically offered by third-party sellers. The Italian authority opened the antitrust case against both companies in 2020 and even searched their offices in the country. 

A total of 70 percent of consumer electronics purchases in the country are from Amazon, AGCM explained, and 40 percent were purchases from sellers that use the website as their main platform. That's why it's essential for Amazon to implement Italy's competition rules and ensure a level playing field for all sellers, as well as to ensure that buyers have access to more options.

AGCM imposed a fine of €68.7 million (US$77 million) on Amazon and a fine of €134.5 million (US$151.2 million) on Apple. It also ordered the companies to end the restrictions and allow the sale of Apple and Beats products on Amazon Italy in "non-discriminatory manner." In a statement sent to Reuters, Amazon called the imposed penalty "disproportionate and unjustified." A spokesperson said in a statement:

"We reject the suggestion that Amazon benefits by excluding sellers from our store, since our business model relies on their success. As a result of the agreement, Italian customers can find the latest Apple and Beats products on our store, benefiting from a catalogue that more than doubled, with better deals and faster shipping."

Meanwhile, Apple denied any wrongdoing:

"To ensure our customers purchase genuine products, we work closely with our reseller partners and have dedicated teams of experts around the world who work with law enforcement, customs and merchants to ensure only genuine Apple products are being sold."

According to Reuters, both companies are planning to appeal the watchdog's penalty.

Bobby Kotick has reportedly said he may consider resigning as CEO of Activision Blizzard if he can’t fix the company’s cultural problems fast enough. According to The Wall Street Journal, Kotick held a meeting last week involving senior leadership at Blizzard Entertainment in which he said he was “ashamed” of some of the incidents that had occured at the studio under his tenure as CEO. He reportedly went to apologize for his handling of the current situation after he was told some employees would not be satisfied unless he were to resign. According to The Journal, Kotick left open the possibility of a resignation if he couldn’t fix the company’s problems “with speed.”

We’ve reached out to Activision Blizzard for comment.

Calls for Kotick to resign have steadily increased in frequency since The Wall Street Journalpublished a report last week which alleged he knew about many of the sexual misconduct incidents that had occured at the company over the years. According to the outlet, Kotick has also been accused of mistreating women himself, including one episode involving a voicemail in which he allegedly threatened to have his assistant killed.

After the report came out on November 16th, Activision Blizzard employees staged a walkout and later started a petition calling for Kotick to be removed as CEO of the company. Since then, a group of activist shareholders has also called on Kotick to step down. In leaked emails, the heads of Sony Interactive Entertainment and Microsoft’s Xbox division both said they were troubled by the allegations that had come out of the publisher. In the latter case, Phil Spencer reportedly told employees he was “evaluating all aspects of our relationship with Activision Blizzard and making ongoing proactive adjustments.”

One group Kotick has seemingly not lost support among is Activision Blizzard’s board of directors. On the same day The Journal published its report, the company’s board said it “remains confident that Bobby Kotick appropriately addressed workplace issues brought to his attention.” 

Female employees at Tesla’s Fremont factory in California face “rampant sexual harassment,” according to a lawsuit filed on Thursday. In a complaint with the state’s Superior Court in Alameda County, Jessica Barraza, a production associate with Tesla, said she was subjected to “nightmarish” working conditions over the past three years. Barraza’s lawsuit describes a factory floor that looks more like “a crude, archaic construction site or frat house” than the site of advanced EV production.

Barraza’s allegations against Tesla are numerous. In one incident, the suit alleges a male co-worker stuck his leg between her thighs when she went to punch in after a lunch break. Amid the harassment, Barraza says her complaints fell on deaf ears. In one instance, she says a supervisor did nothing when she complained of a co-worker staring at her breasts. “Maybe you shouldn’t wear shirts that draw attention to your chest,” her supervisor told her, according to the suit. Barraza told the man she was “wearing a work shirt provided by Tesla.”

“After almost three years of experiencing all the harassment, it robs your sense of security — it almost dehumanizes you,” Barraza said in an interview with The Washington Post, which was the first outlet to report on the suit. We’ve reached out to Tesla for comment. The company does not typically respond to media requests. 

The suit comes one month after Tesla was ordered by a federal court to pay $137 million to a Black employee who said they were subjected to daily racist abuse at its Fremont factory. “We continue to grow and improve in how we address employee concerns,” the company said at the time. “Occasionally, we’ll get it wrong, and when that happens we should be held accountable.” Tesla is appealing the award.

Tesla also isn’t the only EV-maker accused of fostering a toxic workplace for women. Just days before its IPO, Rivian was sued by Laura Schwab, one of its former executives. In her lawsuit, Schwab alleges the automaker fired her after she complained of a “toxic ‘bro culture’” that saw her excluded from meetings and more. “The culture at Rivian was actually the worst I’ve experienced in over 20 years in the automotive industry,” Schwab said at the time.

Phil Spencer is reportedly reassessing Xbox's relationship with Activision Blizzard following new bombshell reports about the company and CEO Bobby Kotick. Spencer, who runs Microsoft's Xbox division, reportedly told employees in an email that he's “evaluating all aspects of our relationship with Activision Blizzard and making ongoing proactive adjustments,” in the wake of an investigation by The Wall Street Journal.

In the memo, which was obtained by Bloomberg, Spencer said he and other leaders at Xbox are “disturbed and deeply troubled by the horrific events and actions” that reportedly took place at Activision Blizzard. "This type of behavior has no place in our industry,” Spencer wrote.

Kotick is said to have known about instances of sexual misconduct at the company for years without reporting them to the board. He has also been accused of mistreating women on numerous occasions.

Spencer has joined Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan in expressing deep concern about the situation. In an internal memo, which also leaked earlier this week, Ryan wrote that he was "disheartened and frankly stunned to read” The Journal's report. He also criticized Activision's response to the allegations. Earlier this week, the company told Engadget that the report presented a “misleading view of Activision Blizzard and our CEO.”

More than 900 Activision Blizzard employees and contractors have now signed a petition demanding Kotick's removal. A shareholder group has also urged the board to remove Kotick and for the board's two longest-serving directors to retire by the end of the year. In addition, Polygon and Eurogamer both called for Kotick's resignation. Strongly worded statements from leaders at Microsoft and Sony, two of Activision Blizzard's most important business partners, will further crank up the pressure.

Engadget has contacted Activision Blizzard for comment.