Category: Sports

Meet BetterUp, the Silicon Valley startup where Prince Harry now works

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Prince Harry is now working for a company called BetterUp, a coaching platform for employers, as its Chief Impact Officer. He says joining BetterUp is an extension of his desire to help people lead more meaningful lives. But what exactly does BetterUp do? Founded in 2013, BetterUp aims to offer more people the opportunity to access expensive executive coaching that can help them be more productive and achieve personal goals. It combines individual one-on-one coaching with a series of educational resources and practice exercises to help people excel at work. To do that, the platform focuses on giving people tools for tackling their work, advocating for promotions, and offering advice on other aspects of their lives that may be inhibiting their growth at the office. This includes coaching on better eating habits and effective parenting. The upper echelons of management are usually the only ones with access to this kind of coaching, but BetterUp is trying to bring it to the corporate working masses. The company charges employers a monthly subscription fee per employee for access to the platform and its coaches. Clients include Airbnb, Google, Hilton, and Warner Brothers, and individuals can also sign up for the platform through a free trial. Read More …

How to build an equitable vaccine passport that respects people’s privacy

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One of President Joe Biden’s executive orders aimed at curbing the pandemic asks government agencies to “assess the feasibility” of linking coronavirus vaccine certificates with other vaccination documents and producing digital versions of them. A vaccine passport, an official document that shows your vaccination status, may soon be required to work or travel. Airlines, industry groups, nonprofits, and technology companies are building a version of this idea that you can display on your mobile phone as an app or part of your digital wallet. Fully reopening the economy requires that we quickly build and administer a protected and equitable digital vaccine passport system . Yet, there are two significant challenges to its success: trust and the digital divide. The American public does not trust our institutions and government with our private data, including information needed for a digital vaccine passport. And for good reason—we can’t protect what we can’t control. According to a recent Pew Research Study , more than 6 in 10 U.S. adults don’t think it’s possible to go through daily life without having data collected about them. We’ve seen the devastating effects of this lack of trust throughout the pandemic response: widespread public rejection of digital contact tracing systems and now, new concerns over vaccine passports. The other challenge, the digital divide, surrounds all aspects of the pandemic response and further complicates the feasibility of a digital vaccine passport Read More …

This science-backed athletic wear can help you sit up straight

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Working hunched over a desk or a kitchen table or reclined on a couch is probably ruining your posture. So is staring at your phone for prolonged periods of time or walking with your head down. But what if you could wear something that made you sit just a little taller during the day? A company called Formewear (previously called IFGfit Labs) has created shirts, leggings, and sports bras that physically help people shift their shoulders backward and better align their spines. The clothing not only helps relieve back problems—it also improves a person’s ability to breathe. “If you wear [the clothes for] one to two hours a day in various activities for several weeks, you will start to see a noticeable change,” says Seiji Liu, cofounder and chief operating officer of Formewear. “Over several weeks people will be able to stand taller.” The Formewear signature men’s shirt has tension bands on the inside that pull shoulders back and down, so they sit where they’re supposed to. The sports bra physically pushes shoulders back so they form a straight line, perpendicular to the spine. The goal of this clothing is to assist people in having better posture as well as train them through muscle memory to maintain that posture. The leggings, both for men and women, are designed to encourage good form during cardio workouts. Perhaps the greatest technological innovation in these clothes is good tailoring based on complicated biomechanics Read More …

Inside the new playbook for creating a kids’ TV hit in the streaming age

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When we think about the must-see TV that draws us to sign up for streaming platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, and Apple TV Plus, the list is endless. The Crown , The Handmaid’s Tale , Bridgerton , Ted Lasso . But what about kids’ shows? Sure, there are old episodes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Pokémon , but there’s a gaping dearth of new, buzzy series with any real lasting power. (Does Netflix’s Miraculous: Tales of Lady Bug & Cat Noir really have a significant following?) Kids tune in to a new Netflix show here and there, but for the most part the platform’s real appeal for children is its sprawling, buffet atmosphere—and all those reruns. ( The Mandalorian over on Disney Plus is an exception, though that show skews heavily toward teens and adults too.) Cyma Zarghami , a veteran of children’s TV who spent 33 years at Nickelodeon, most recently as its president, sees this as white space in the industry, one that she is eager to fill. Last year Zarghami started MiMo Studios , a kids’ production company that aims to create the kind of franchises that have been lacking in the kids’ TV space in recent years in both the linear and digital worlds. “ SpongeBob [ SquarePants ], Peppa Pig , PJ Masks , those are all at least seven to eight years old,” Zarghami says, ticking off some of Nickelodeon’s biggest hits. “Nothing has emerged off the old platform or the new that’s really resonated with audiences.” Cyma Zarghami [Photo: MiMo Studios] As for why that is, Zarghami says, “There are too many choices, there’s not enough marketing, everything is a little derivative, and quantity, not quality, is the mandate”—especially in streaming. “So nothing has really floated to the top.” She also says that streaming companies’ priority is to grow subscribers and minimize churn, as opposed to “building the next Game of Thrones for kids.” At MiMo—which stands for “mini movie”—Zarghami hopes to do exactly that by investing in properties built on great, preexisting stories and characters that have the maximum potential to become a franchise. But the Hollywood formula ends there. Read More …

26 great free streaming services for cord cutters

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The best thing about cutting the cable cord is that you get a lot more control over your monthly TV bill. Instead of spending $100 per month or so on a bloated bundle of TV channels, you can throw together a few streaming services such as Netflix or Hulu and save a lot of money. Alternatively, you can take things to the extreme and trim your TV bill to zero dollars per month. These days, there are so many free streaming services that you can watch hours of TV every night and spend nothing. Whether you’re chasing that mythical $0 TV bill, or just trying to pad out your paid subscriptions with a few more things to watch, here are 26 free streaming TV services you ought to know about. Tubi Tubi may not have the name recognition of Netflix or Hulu, but that hasn’t stopped it from hitting 33 million monthly active users last year and being acquired by Fox . In addition to a vast library of movies and shows, the service also offers free news channels and local newscasts from Fox affiliates around the country. And if you create an account, you can synchronize your watchlist across devices. [ Tubi ] Notable programming: The Infiltrator , Hell’s Kitchen , Alias , Stop Making Sense . Read More …