Tech Report: Amazon delivery drivers go on their first ever strike

Thursday, Amazon delivery drivers and dispatchers walked out of their delivery facility and demanded that Amazon bargain with them. The drivers want a higher wage, protections against the extreme heat of California summers, and the right to refuse unsafe deliveries. The 84 drivers have held picket lines before, but this marks the first time that Amazon delivery drivers in the U.S. have walked out.

Ticketmaster and SeatGeek will dump ‘junk fees’ after White House pressure. Junk fees are hidden expenses that jack up ticket costs, making them higher than the sticker price on many ticketing sites. This effectively undercuts access to some of the hottest shows at a time when demand for concerts is soaring.

Global tech layoffs have surpassed 200,000 since the start of the year, according to the website Layoffs.fyi. Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, and Spotify are among the tech companies that saw waves of layoffs.

Microsoft shares climbed to a record after analysts at JPMorgan Chase touted the software maker’s potential for growth in artificial intelligence. Microsoft is a major beneficiary of the rise of ChatGPT and tangential products. On top of its hefty investment in OpenAI, the company also provides the underlying computing power.