10 things in tech you need to know today

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1. Steve Bannon isn’t getting booted from Facebook. Despite the former White House adviser suggesting that COVID-19 adviser Dr Fauci should be beheaded, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he hadn’t violated the platform’s policies.

2. Mark Zuckerberg privately acknowledged President-elect Joe Biden. “I believe the outcome of the election is now clear and Joe Biden is going to be our next president,” Zuckerberg told a private meeting of employees.

3. TikTok isn’t getting banned yet. The Commerce Department said it won’t enforce an executive order that would have effectively banned TIkTok in the US in order to comply with a federal judge’s ruling temporarily blocking the ban.

4. 100 Google rivals complained to Europe’s most powerful tech regulator. Firms including TripAdvisor and Expedia say Google uses its existing search dominance to expand unfettered into vertical search such as Google Flights and Google Travel.

5. US cyber chief Christopher Krebs expects to be fired. His agency, CISA, has displeased the White House by running a website that fact-checks election misinformation, including information put out by President Trump.

6. Xi Jinping personally blocked Ant Group’s IPO. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Chinese premier was furious at Ant CEO Jack Ma for criticizing financial regulation.

7. Don’t vape into your new Xbox. Microsoft requested users not to blow vape smoke into the Xbox Series X after viral videos showed smoke billowing from its vented top.

8. We collated the 28 most powerful EU lawmakers and lobbyists. Top regulator Margrethe Vestager, and internal market commissioner Thierry Breton are among those blazing the trail on tech regulation.

9. Microsoft poached a Salesforce exec. The Redmond giant hired Salesforce chief data officer Hernan Asorey to take the same role within its commercial business unit, according to the executive’s LinkedIn.

10. Enterprise software looks recession-proof. Cloud-based software companies have largely shook off the effects off the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report from VC firm OpenView Venture Partners.