Weekly output: game development, Tesla Robotaxi, Bluetooth upgrades

I started this week in Austin for SXSW and will start the coming week by flying to Los Angeles, courtesy of an event United Airlines is hosting at LAX to show off tech upgrades coming to its fleet. The airline is covering my airfare and lodging, the reverse of the pattern that has prevailed over decades of my business travel.

3/17/2026: Crafting Global Games with Local Insight and Cultural Fusion, SXSW

I returned to SXSW after a year off when Nika Nour, a pal from D.C. tech-policy circles who’s now a senior vice president leading international business development at Savvy Games Group, asked if I could step in to moderate this panel. And then two of the other panelists got changed out less than a week in advance. Fortunately, everybody else on the panel (Nika, actor/producer/author Anjali Bhimani, and Six Foot chief marketing officer Manuel Delgado) was a practiced speaker and eased my job of leading a conversation about an industry that I haven’t covered that much lately.

3/19/2026: I Got Around SXSW in Tesla Robotaxis: The Rides Were Better Than the Buggy, Juvenile App, PCMag

I thought I should try Tesla’s self-driving-car taxi service while in Austin, but it took a day of unsuccessful attempts before I could book my first ride. And then the experience was surprisingly uneventful, with each of my five rides featuring a safety operator in the front passenger seat who didn’t do anything that I noticed.

3/19/2026: Get Ready: Bluetooth 6 and Other Advances Will Give Your Devices a Much Needed Upgrade, PCMag

PCMag elected to re-publish this post with some new text by me to highlight Bluetooth version numbers.

Confirmed: EA are being sold to investment group led by Saudi Arabia, Silver Lake and Jared Kushner for estimated $55 billion

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/ea-are-about-to-be-bought-for-50-billion-by-saudi-arabia-and-jared-kushners-investment-firms-claims-report

Niantic May Be Selling Its Games Division Including Pokemon Go #gaming #mobile #niantic #pokemongo #savvygamesgroup #scopely

https://www.lowyat.net/2025/343200/niantic-selling-games-division-including-pokemon-go/