Uber Eats Cracks Down on Menu Cloning: Same Burrito, 12 Names, Really?

Uber Eats is tired of restaurants using the same menu under different names and crowding the app with identical options. So, they’re cracking down on this practice and giving those restaurants the boot. But fear not, hungry folks! Uber Eats is also helping small restaurants connect with legitimate virtual brands.

The app is now using an algorithm to weed out the redundant restaurants, which will remove 5,000 listings or 13% of virtual brands in North America. This includes a Colorado sports bar that sold identical breakfast burritos under 12 different names and a Pakistani restaurant in San Francisco that cloned its menu 20 times.

On the other hand, Uber Eats' new Certified Virtual Restaurant Program will provide access to established brands such as Huevorito, Scratch Chicken, and MrBeast Burger, along with support from the companies' operations teams. Uber Eats has no plans to create its own virtual brands but sees a high-growth potential for virtual restaurants in the future.

Virgin Orbit's future in limbo as Richard Branson abandons ship

Richard Branson’s latest venture, Virgin Orbit, may be facing difficulties after its recent failure to launch from the UK due to a technical malfunction in January caused a 33% drop in shares. The company, which launches satellites from a jumbo jet, may need rescue financing or bankruptcy to continue, as cash runs low and future launch attempts remain unclear.

However, the billionaire behind the company, Richard Branson, has stopped putting money into the venture, forcing Virgin Orbit to seek financing from external investors. Despite having pumped over $1bn into the company, Branson’s reserve marks a reversal for the businessman, who was once at the forefront of the SPAC boom. Experts warn that Virgin is the first domino to fall in a market that may not be able to support many players. Virgin Orbit has not commented, but investors and employees alike are bracing themselves for bad news.

Twitter's Leaked Source Code: Culprit Named 'FreeSpeechEnthusiast'

Twitter is in hot water after parts of its source code were leaked on GitHub. The company filed a DMCA request to get the code taken down and has asked the court to order GitHub to identify the culprit. However, the account responsible for the leak is named "FreeSpeechEnthusiast," which may be a reference to Twitter CEO Elon Musk, who has called himself a "free speech absolutist" in the past.

Twitter has requested the names and IP addresses of anyone who downloaded the code and has even filed a court order in California to get identifying information. The leak comes just days before Twitter is set to open-source its recommendation algorithm, which will likely reveal far less of the company's proprietary code. It's been a tough year for Twitter since Musk's acquisition, and layoffs and code freezes have been implemented to prevent sabotage from departing employees. Meanwhile, Musk has been focused on cost-cutting and building new revenue opportunities like Twitter Blue subscriptions, with mixed results.

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Remover — Remove anything unwanted from an image in seconds.

Articles & Resources

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The technology behind GitHub’s new code search — A look at what went into building the world's largest public code search index.

Google and Mozilla are working on iOS browsers that break current App Store rules — Currently, all iOS and iPadOS browsers need to use the same engine as Safari.

How Sweden became the Silicon Valley of Europe — Swedish welfare state fuels European tech boom with Klarna's IPO.

Twitter’s ‘For You’ Feed Won’t Recommend Unverified Accounts — Its default “For You” feed will only show tweets from users paying $8 a month