Geek Life – Page 2 of 132

WATCH: Sea-Tac Airport’s self-driving wheelchairs are getting stymied by unexpected obstacles

Walking through Sea-Tac International Airport this week, I noticed a self-driving, electric wheelchair, on its way back through the concourse after taking a passenger to a gate. Recalling from GeekWire’s… Read More

Get in the picture: High-tech ‘Portal’ is a visual delight for those entering Seattle office building

Stepping into work never looked this good. A digital “moment of zen” has taken shape at a downtown Seattle office building, using cutting-edge technology and AI tools to showcase iconic… Read More

Microsoft vet who founded beer delivery app ID’d as Melinda French Gates’ new boyfriend

The New York gossip sites are abuzz over Melinda French Gates’ love life this week, as the billionaire Seattle philanthropist was spotted holding hands with her new entrepreneur boyfriend. Page… Read More

Inside the ‘Stranger Things’ house that a Seattle real estate startup bought and turned into an Airbnb

Want to spend a few nights in Hawkins, Ind., circa 1983? You can get there via the Atlanta area, 2024. The house used for exterior shots in “Stranger Things” —… Read More

It’s sad Kurt Cobain ‘never got to see GPS,’ actress Helen Mirren says of the late rock star

There are surely plenty of things in our modern world that Kurt Cobain might marvel at had he not died in 1994 at the age of 27. We didn’t have… Read More

3D printing on the move: UW device can map a room and print custom items in desired space

Printing a new gadget or art piece from a tabletop 3D printer is all fine and good. But what if the printer was mobile, and could move around a house… Read More

Chirping smoke detectors light a fire in startup founder to build ultimate online guide to the devices

The middle-of-the-night chirp from a smoke detector might be the most unsettling sound a homeowner has to deal with. Where’s that coming from? Is there a fire? Did I replace… Read More

Steve Ballmer on ′60 Minutes′: Microsoft, Clippers, and sorry, no Seattle Seahawks

There’s a method to what might otherwise appear to be madness. People who worked with Steve Ballmer at Microsoft already know this, but it came through for a national audience… Read More

Fact-checking Saturday Night Live’s ‘happy Amazon employee’ sketch

“Saturday Night Live” is poking fun at Amazon again. Monica, a “happy Amazon employee” played by Ego Nwodim, joined the latest “Weekend Update” to talk about her job delivering packages… Read More

Seahawks quarterback takes his frustration out on a Microsoft Surface tablet

The Microsoft Surface is still being used as an outlet for frustration during NFL games. After Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith threw an interception in the fourth quarter of Thursday’s… Read More

Seattle-area Star Wars collectors among group planning museum for film-related memorabilia

Four massive collections of Star Wars memorabilia, including two in the Seattle area, could come together under one museum roof in a plan that’s sure to intrigue geeks across the… Read More

Safely returned: 2-year-old child is OK after getting stuck playing in Amazon package locker in Seattle

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with comment from Amazon. Here’s an Amazon return with a happy ending. A 2-year-old child playing in an Amazon Hub Locker in Seattle… Read More

Found a raccoon in the living room — now seeking a tech solution so it doesn’t happen again

Well, that was a fun morning! I woke up around 2:20 a.m. today to the sound of what turned out to be a cat dish falling off the platform in… Read More

This ad is bananas: In sly dig at Amazon, shoe maker tells workers to peel away from their desks

Free bananas might be the one thing that’ll satisfy Amazon employees who have to return to the office five days a week. Logan Roy says, “F–k the fruit!” In a… Read More

Ketchup with Bill Gates: ‘Late Show’ chat starts with love for hot dogs and ends with concerns over AI

Somehow the conversation with Bill Gates always turns to food. And lately, AI. Gates was back in New York City for the annual Gates Foundation Goalkeepers event this week, and… Read More

New species of hammerhead shark named after Paul Allen, who funded critical research

Nine years after throwing his support behind an initiative aimed at protecting sharks and their habitats, Paul Allen has a namesake shark. Sphyrna alleni is a new hammerhead shark species… Read More

Jeff Bezos is starry eyed on Amazon with glowing review of fiancée’s children’s book about space

Nothing like a 5-star Amazon review on your new book from the guy who created the company. Jeff Bezos gave fiancée Lauren Sanchez’s new children’s book the top rating in… Read More

Netflix series explores Bill Gates’ views on pressing issues of the future, from AI to climate change

Bill Gates’ desire to find solutions for some of humanity’s most pressing problems is the focus of a new Netflix series premiering today called “What’s Next? The Future with Bill… Read More

Putting the AI in Apple Cup: Send us your best images of Huskies and Cougars battling

The 2024 Apple Cup college football matchup between the University of Washington and Washington State University has a bit of different look and feel this year. The game is earlier… Read More

Steve Ballmer brings his facts in a deep dive on government policy with ‘Daily Show’s’ Jon Stewart

“It’s an incredibly complex conversation,” Jon Stewart said near the conclusion of just that on Tuesday night after a “Daily Show” deep dive on government policy and efficacy with Steve… Read More

No regular Joe: The new Starbucks CEO posed with a big cup of coffee, and it got us buzzing

Coffee is serious business in Seattle. Whether or not you drink it, where you buy it, how you take it, what your vessel of choice is — all of that… Read More

Need a Mariners break? Seattle friends hope they have a hit on their hands with baseball trivia game

Baseball fans looking to dive deeper into their favorite team or take on a diversion from the current state of play — oh, hey Mariners — have a new Seattle-made online… Read More

A portrait of tech and art together: Seattle school makes colorful new home in an Amazon HQ tower

In the same building where software engineers labor in front of computers to write code and build products, artists are poised in front of easels, painting portraits and landscapes. On… Read More

Computer shoes, Pac-Man, a rock from space and more gems in the upcoming Paul Allen auction

Imagine playing a vintage Pac-Man arcade game while wearing Puma’s RS-Computer sneakers and pondering what to order for lunch off a menu from the Titanic. For roughly $40,000, that scenario… Read More

Rap legend Sir Mix-A-Lot mixes it up at Black Tech Night with talk of AI, music gadgets and more

“I like large language models and I cannot lie …” Legendary Seattle rapper Sir Mix-A-Lot probably isn’t ready to sub AI references in for big butts in his 1992 hit… Read More

Drone company looking for answers to loss of devices into lake after major July 4 tech failure

The head of the drone company in charge of a failed Fourth of July light show in SeaTac, Wash., called it a “devastating” incident, but he took some comfort in… Read More

They gave machines to Living Computers for preservation, but museum’s closure is a bitter end

Computer enthusiasts who sold or donated vintage items to Paul Allen and Seattle’s Living Computers Museum + Labs are concerned that their contributions could be auctioned off, scattered, discarded, or… Read More

Fans upset by closure of Living Computers question why Seattle museum couldn’t be saved

Fans of the Living Computers Museum + Labs in Seattle reacted with disappointment to the news Tuesday that Paul Allen’s estate won’t be reopening the facility, as some questioned whether… Read More

Legislation would honor Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture as a national museum ‘of great importance’

Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) is seeking a national designation through a bill introduced in Congress that would honor the institution “as a place of great importance” in the… Read More

‘Greatest setting in college football’ gets the LEGO treatment with fan’s elaborate Husky Stadium build

Husky Stadium is often called the “greatest setting in college football.” Now the iconic University of Washington football venue might be the greatest setting in all of LEGOland — at… Read More