The Japanese multinational SoftBank Group launched its $98 billion VisionFund last year. Since then, it’s dramatically changed the landscape in tech and venture capital. The fund has taken a majority stake in Uber, poured billions into WeWork, Nvidia, DoorDash, Slack and the dog walking startup Wag. SoftBank’s influence is so big, it’s pushing other venture capital companies to raise more money. Sequoia Capital, one of Silicon Valley’s best-known firms, is reportedly trying to raise more than $12 billion in new capital just to keep up. Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood speaks to Anand Sanwal of CB Insights about how VisionFund is changing everything.

This week BlackBerry sued Facebook saying that all its messaging products — Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram — violate patents that BlackBerry filed when it built BlackBerry Messenger over a decade ago. Facebook responded, saying it intends to fight the lawsuit. Molly Wood speaks with Ina Fried of Axios about whether BlackBerry is after something more than just a really big settlement check.

After spending almost a year orbiting Earth aboard the International Space Station, the longest spaceflight by an American astronaut, Scott Kelly returned to our planet two years ago to much admiration and with a severe case of jelly legs. His mission was to better understand how living in space affects human physiology. Now he’s partnered with 3M to promote science awareness to the masses. Kelly spoke with Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood about his life and the future of space travel.  

Congress took a step toward tighter internet censorship last week, depending on how you look at it. The House passed the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act, which makes it easier to sue websites that allow sex traffickers to post on their sites. The bill changes previous legislation that made sure third-party providers, like websites, couldn’t be held liable for online posts by independent users. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act was co-authored by then-Rep. Chris Cox, a Republican from California, and Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon in 1996. Cox spoke with Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood about the legislation and why it may be time for an update.    

Among the list of banned advertising on Facebook you’ll find the usual suspects: guns, drugs, porn etc. Also, on that list? Bad grammar, and notably, cryptocurrencies. When it comes to political campaign ads however, the rules are few and far between. Unlike television, radio and print ads, online campaign ads don’t face federal regulations. Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood spoke with Phil Weiser, a professor of law and telecommunications at the University of Colorado, about the state of online political advertising.

There is high drama in the semiconductor world. That’s not a typo. Singapore-based chipmaker Broadcom has made a hostile takeover bid for it’s competitor Qualcomm. Qualcomm refused the offer, and Broadcom is trying to stack the Qualcomm board to force a yes vote. The deal, should it go through, would be the biggest ever in the tech industry at over $140 billion. All that is just the tip of the silicon iceberg. There are growing national security and privacy concerns coming from the U.S. and the European Union over the deal. Not to mention how it will affect competition. Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood spoke with Patrick Moorhead, president and principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, to unpack the deal’s implications. 

Modern electronics rely heavily on one thing: lithium ion batteries. With carmakers gearing up to increase electric vehicle production, the demand for lithium ion batteries doesn’t appear to be slowing down. These batteries rely on an increasingly important supply of the metal cobalt. Most cobalt is mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Central Africa under brutal conditions. Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood spoke with the BBC’s Catherine Byaruhanga about Apple’s reported talks to buy cobalt directly from miners and whether it will reduce human rights concerns. 

So, your company was hacked. What do you do? Turns out there isn’t much you have to do legally when it comes to informing consumers and investors. That all may be about to change. The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued new guidance for public companies asking for faster and more specific notification about hacks. The SEC also laid down new rules about post-hack insider trading. Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood spoke with Michael Greenberger, professor of law at the University of Maryland, about the impact of the SEC’s new rules.

Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts has earned a reputation as a fierce consumer advocate. She’s gone after big banks and financial institutions, but now she’s setting her sights on credit-rating agencies. Specifically Equifax, which endured a massive security breach last year. Over 100 million consumers had their personal information, like Social Security numbers and addresses, compromised in the hack. Now Warren and Sen. Mark Warner, a Democrat from Virginia, are introducing legislation that would levy harsh penalties for similar types of security breaches at Equifax and other rating agencies. Last year, Warren sponsored a bill that would allow consumers to freeze their credit any time for free, a service that rating agencies, including Equifax, have traditionally charged for. (Equifax waived these fees for a limited time after the Sept. 2017 breach.) Warren spoke with Marketplace Tech host Molly Wood about her office’s recent report on the Equifax hack and her proposals to combat the cyber threat to consumers.