GeekWire

Four years after acquiring Minecraft, Microsoft this week unveiled its most ambitious effort yet to take the popular franchise to the next level, and specifically into the real world. GeekWire went hands on with the game in a sneak preview, but with the release not expected until later this summer, why the heck is Microsoft touting this game before the rest of us can actually play it?  Plus, Amazon is offering its employees an incentive to quit their jobs, if they start their own package delivery companies. This is the latest wrinkle in the company's Delivery Service Partners program, which we explored in depth last year.  Finally, on the Random Channel, the latest twist in our quest to stream live audio at the ballpark, a commentary on the sequestering of tech execs, and the latest in the scooter saga, featuring Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen in on our conversation with Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, about her book, "The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World." The book has garnered national attention and further elevated Melinda's status as an influential public figure in her own right. GeekWire's Monica Nickelsburg and Todd Bishop spoke with Melinda at her office in Seattle, at the conclusion of her national book tour. Go to GeekWire.com for full coverage.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How does Jeff Bezos plan to get to the moon, and what will he do after that? On this special bonus edition of the GeekWire Podcast, aerospace and science editor Alan Boyle calls in from Washington, D.C., where he covered the Amazon founder's unveiling of the new Blue Moon lunar lander from his Blue Origin space venture, aiming to put humans back on the moon by 2024 as part of a broader plan to colonize space. Plus, audio highlights from Bezos's talk.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's a common theme running through the spring season of developer conferences and tech events: trust and privacy. With the tech industry faceing a backlash from consumers and regulators, tech giants including Facebook, Google, Apple and Microsoft are looking to assure everyone that they're listening. But each company is approaching the issue in a very different way, and with a very different track record on the topic. On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, we listen to the CEOs of these companies talk about privacy, and analyze the different approaches. Other stories covered on this episode: Seattle will launch a scooter-share pilot — if providers agree to key safety and liability conditions On the other side of the state, Spokane’s tech scene capitalizes on Seattle squeeze ‘Game of Thrones’ gets roasted for leaving a Starbucks coffee cup in a shot during episode four See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The strength and success of the people and companies across the Pacific Northwest tech ecosystem was on full display Thursday night at the GeekWire Awards. GeekWire's Jonathan Sposato, John Cook and Todd Bishop share highlights and clips from the night on this episode of the GeekWire Podcast. More highlights here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amazon's shift to one-day shipping as the core benefit of its Prime membership program promises to significantly alter Amazon’s financial picture and accelerate the pace of global online commerce. On this special episode of the GeekWire Podcast, reporter Nat Levy joins us to look at the implications of this move for Amazon, its customers, competitors, investors and the shipping + logistics industry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What do Pinterest, Lyft, Uber and Slack have in common? Yes, they're all newly public or about to make their initial public offerings. But they also share a common characteristic on the bottom line -- proceeding with their IPOs with lots of revenue and growth but, so far at least, without the consistent profits to show for it. And they're part of a trend. Eighty-three percent of IPOs in the first three quarters of 2018 were made by companies that hadn't posted profits in the prior 12 months.  So what's the future of these companies? On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, we're joined by someone who has spent a lot of time looking at the financials of many of these companies: Ben Gilbert, co-founder of Seattle's Pioneer Square Labs, and co-host of the podcast Acquired, which tells the stories of major companies, acquisitions and IPOs. He and his co-host David Rosenthal have been focusing on these companies on their recent episodes, starting with Lyft and Pinterest. Since we recorded this episode, Slack has also released its S-1 registration statement, revealing a $138.9 million net loss in its most recent fiscal year.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Founded in 2015, Seattle startup Arivale aspired to pioneer a new sector called scientific wellness, combining genetic testing with personal coaching to improve the health of its members. Its founder, genomics legend Lee Hood, said the company "really stands a chance of being the Google or Microsoft of this whole arena." But four years later, Arivale abruptly closed its doors this week. We explain what happened with special guest, GeekWire chief business officer Daniel Rossi, an Arivale member whose experience in the program was chronicled in our 2017 series. Plus, Microsoft breaks the trillion-dollar mark, Bill Gates serves as a surprising role model for other dads, and there's a new set of guidelines for kids' screen time.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seattle has a new unicorn, Outreach, the sales and marketing automation company that raised a $114 million funding round this week, pushing its valuation to $1.1 billion. The news sends John and Todd on a startup odyssey, exploring the hidden connections among the new wave of public companies and tech behemoths in Silicon Valley and Seattle, including Uber, Lyft, Convoy and others. Plus, Amazon and Microsoft are preparing to challenge Apple's AirPods,. And on the Random Channel, Melinda Gates has a message for the tech industry, and John is determined to be a "Never Throner."See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Almost every week at the end of the GeekWire Podcast, we feature our "Random Channel" segment, discussing all the random items of questionable relevance that we were buzzing about behind the scenes during the course of the week. This week, with several of us out of the office, we decided to forgo our regular news conversation and go "full random," you might say. We hope you enjoy getting to know some of the offbeat interests of our team, including Kurt Schlosser, Monica Nickelsburg and Taylor Soper. And don't worry, we'll be back on topic next week with our regular show.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.