Amazon’s Jeff Bezos launches $2 billion fund to help the homeless
Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said Thursday that he is giving $2 billion to start a fund that will open preschools in low-income neighborhoods and give money to nonprofits that helps homeless...
View ArticleGM recalls 1.2M pickups, SUVs for power steering problem
DETROIT >> General Motors is recalling 1.2 million big pickup trucks and SUVs mainly in North America because of power-assisted steering problems that have been cited in a number of accidents. GM...
View ArticleThe Apple Watch is inching toward becoming a medical device
CUPERTINO, Calif. >> Apple is trying to turn its smartwatch from a niche gadget into a lifeline to better health by slowly evolving it into a medical device. In its fourth incarnation, called...
View ArticleFacebook to fight fake news by fact-checking photos, videos
NEW YORK >> Facebook says it is expanding its fact-checking program to include photos and videos as it fights fake news and misinformation on its service. Malicious groups seeking to sow...
View ArticleVolkswagen to stop making iconic Beetle next summer
DETROIT >> After selling it on and off in the U.S. for nearly seven decades, Volkswagen has decided to squash its iconic Beetle. The company’s American unit announced today that it would end...
View ArticleOperator runs multiple drone deliveries for 1st time in Reno
RENO, Nev. >> The city of Reno confirmed the first successful deliveries by multiple drones steered by a single operator under a federal program fast-tracking regulatory approval for unmanned...
View ArticleTarget to hire 120K for holidays; UPS, FedEx also beefing up
NEW YORK >> Target plans to hire more than 120,000 people for the busy holiday shopping season, a 20 percent increase from last year. The retailer says the temporary hires will stock store...
View ArticleAverage U.S. mortgage rates climb; 30-year at 4.60%
WASHINGTON >> Long-term U.S. mortgage rates this week jumped to their highest level since the start of August, raising costs for would-be homebuyers. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said today that...
View ArticleBurger King, Pizza Hut, other fast-food chains agree to stop using...
Eight fast-food chains including Burger King, Pizza Hut, Papa John’s and Denny’s will no longer enforce “no-poaching” pacts that require their franchisees not to hire away each other’s employees, under...
View ArticleVolkswagen to stop making iconic Beetle next summer
DETROIT >> After selling it on and off in the U.S. for nearly seven decades, Volkswagen has decided to squash its iconic Beetle. The company’s American unit announced Thursday that it would end...
View ArticleRearview Mirror: It’s a full house when it comes to names in Hawaii
One of my readers, Wally Hirai, told me last month that he dined with a group of friends at Bravo restaurant below Anna Miller’s in Aiea. None of them could remember the restaurant that was there...
View ArticleSpaceX will reveal the world’s first private traveler to fly around the moon
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. >> SpaceX said it has signed the first private moon traveler, with some changes to its original game plan. The big reveal on who it is — and when the flight to the moon will...
View ArticleHawaiian Airlines to offer nonstop service to Boston starting in April
Hawaiian Airlines announced late Thursday night that it will be the only carrier to offer nonstop flights between Honolulu and Boston when it begins the service in April. The state’s largest carrier...
View ArticleApple, Firefox tools aim to thwart Facebook, Google tracking
NEW YORK >> Facebook and other companies routinely track your online surfing habits to better target ads at you. Two web browsers now want to help you fight back in what’s becoming an escalating...
View ArticleColumn: Recipients can decide between 2 plans to receive benefits
At a family reunion my Aunt Abby and Uncle Glen got into a squabble over the best way to get their Medicare benefits. Uncle Glen is an Original Medicare man, and has been for a decade or so. Aunt Abby...
View ArticleOn the Move: Jefferson S. Willard
Mitsuyama & Rebman LLLC has hired Jefferson S. Willard to its counsel relationship team. He was previously a Navy intelligence cryptologist and is a former deputy prosecuting attorney with...
View ArticleAlexander & Baldwin queries Kailua residents about town issues
Alexander & Baldwin mailed out out a survey this week to Kailua residents, asking for their feedback on the town’s future to fulfill a promise made at a neighborhood board meeting several months...
View ArticleHawaiian Airlines to fly nonstop to Boston starting in April
Hawaiian Airlines announced late Thursday night that it will be the only carrier to offer nonstop flights between Honolulu and Boston when it begins the service in April. The state’s largest carrier...
View ArticleJapan Airlines celebrates a year since reinstating direct flights to Kona
In the year since Japan Airlines resumed direct flights to and from Kona, the airline has experienced a tumultuous cycle of prosperity, loss and apparent recovery on Hawaii island. On Saturday, JAL...
View ArticleElon Musk names Japanese billionaire for around-the-moon space trip
Elon Musk just revealed the identity of the precious cargo hitching a ride around the moon with his rocket company: Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa. Maezawa will fly on Space Exploration...
View ArticleColumn: Acer Spin 5 home office laptop is worthy of your consideration
We’re always assessing technology that we think can be useful to small-business owners, and one of the better laptops we’ve looked at recently is the Spin 5 from Acer. Stylish, with a slim, brushed...
View ArticleMatson to start serving Christmas Island
Honolulu-based ocean cargo transportation firm Matson Inc. plans to start serving one of the most remote islands in the Pacific next week. The company announced a new scheduled service every two months...
View ArticleLos Angeles takes step toward banning sale of fur products
LOS ANGELES >> Los Angeles, one of the world’s major fashion centers and long a symbol of glitz and glamour, is taking steps to ban the sale of new fur products, a move that would make it the...
View ArticleMcDonald’s workers across U.S. protest against sex harassment
NEW ORLEANS >> McDonald’s workers are staging protests in several cities in what organizers called the first multistate strike seeking to combat sexual harassment in the workplace. In Chicago,...
View ArticleCoca-Cannabis? Coke analyzing cannabis in wellness drinks
The Coca-Cola Company said Monday it is “closely watching” the expanding use of a cannabis element in drinks, another sign cannabis and cannabis-infused products are getting more acceptance in...
View ArticleHale Kipa holds blessing for new base
Hale Kipa, a Hawaii nonprofit organization that specializes in working with at-risk youth and their families, held a blessing Monday for its planned West Oahu campus. The campus, located on 4.26 acres...
View ArticleHawaii Career Expo set for Saturday at Ka Makana Ali‘i
The Hawaii Career Expo has expanded to the west side of Oahu through a new partnership with Ka Makana Ali‘i and will hold an event Saturday for prospective job applicants. The event, hosted by the...
View ArticleRetail, real estate trends topic of talk
The Retail Merchants of Hawaii will present an update on the latest in Retail & Real Estate Technology Trends on 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Pacific Club. National experts will discuss how...
View ArticleFree homebuyers workshop scheduled
The Hawaii HomeOwnership Center and the Aloha Chapter of the Asian Real Estate Association of America are co-sponsoring a free workshop for prospective homebuyers 6 p.m. Oct. 1 at the HawaiiUSA...
View ArticleDelta joins United, JetBlue in raising checked-bag fees
ATLANTA >> Delta Air Lines is joining two rivals in raising fees to check a bag on a flight within the United States. Delta today posted new fees of $30 for checking a first bag and $40 for a...
View ArticleSony re-releasing original PlayStation with 20 games for $99
Sony Corp. is rolling out a mini version of its original PlayStation game console, seeking to tap in to the retro craze and nostalgia of gamers who grew up with the iconic device. The new PlayStation...
View ArticleMonsanto asks judge to throw out $289M award in cancer suit
SAN FRANCISCO >> Agribusiness company Monsanto has asked a San Francisco judge to throw out a jury’s $289 million award to a former school groundskeeper who said the company’s Roundup weed killer...
View ArticleDickey’s Barbecue Pit to open first Hawaii location in Kapolei
A 77-year-old restaurant business that slowly smokes meat and claims to be the biggest barbecue chain in the country plans to open its first Hawaii location next month in Kapolei. Texas-based Dickey’s...
View ArticleHawaii timeshare occupancy ticked up in second quarter
An April flood on Kauai and an erupting volcano during May and June on the Big Island didn’t seem to deter timeshare visitors to Hawaii, according to a state report released Wednesday. The Hawaii...
View ArticleShidler alum establishes $100K endowment for promising student leader
University of Hawaii at Manoa Shidler College of Business alumnus Christopher Helm and wife, Debra, have established a $100,000 endowment through the Helm Family Trust for the David Bess Leadership...
View Article5,500 hogs, 3.4 million chickens and turkeys drown in Florence aftermath
For Chris Smith, whose North Carolina farm is home to 30,000 chickens and 150 acres of sweet potatoes, the fight to survive Hurricane Florence is not yet over. As torrential rains from the storm filled...
View ArticleColorado meatpacker recalls 132K pounds of ground beef after E. coli death
Cargill Inc. is recalling more than 132,600 pounds of ground beef possibly contaminated with harmful E. coli bacteria that food-safety investigators believe has already caused 17 illnesses and one...
View ArticleWill American Airlines bar customers from changing a ticket?
FORT WORTH, Texas >> American Airlines is threatening to prohibit customers from making changes to nonrefundable tickets if Congress makes good on a proposal to crack down on unreasonable airline...
View ArticleNew California law will limit plastic straws in restaurants
SACRAMENTO, Calif. >> People who want straws with their drinks at California restaurants will have to request them under a new law. The law signed today by Gov. Jerry Brown makes California the...
View ArticleNissan recalls cars, SUVs due to risk of fire
DETROIT >> Nissan recalled nearly 240,000 cars and SUVs worldwide due to a fire risk and is advising people to park the vehicles outdoors in rare cases. An anti-lock brake pump can leak brake...
View Article
