Get caught up on the latest technology and startup news from the past week. Here are the most popular stories on GeekWire for the week of Jan. 11, 2026.
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Most popular stories on GeekWire
Tech Moves: Microsoft CVP jumps to Google; Seattle engineers launch new startup; GitHub names VP
Microsoft loses an exec to Google while GitHub names a new VP, plus leadership changes at Seattle-area companies Avante and Atana. … Read More
‘A new era of software development’: Claude Code has Seattle engineers buzzing as AI coding hits new phase
More than 150 techies packed the house at a Claude Code meetup event in Seattle on Thursday evening, eager to trade use cases and share how they’re using Anthropic’s fast-growing technology. … Read More
Microsoft responds to AI data center revolt, vowing to cover full power costs and reject local tax breaks
The tech giant’s new “community first” initiative includes pledges to pay full power costs, reject local tax breaks, and replenish more water than it uses — a response to growing backlash against AI infrastructure expansion. … Read More
What Microsoft has learned about housing, and why it’s urging the state to unlock commercial land
Microsoft is supporting a Washington state bill to open up underused commercial land for housing, asserting that the larger crisis is solvable only if lawmakers unlock land faster, streamline permitting, and treat housing as a connected system rather than a series of one-off projects. … Read More
Seattle skyscraper renamed to JPMorganChase Center as banking giant relocates tech team
The financial services corporation now occupies 128,000 square feet at the building, previously known as the Russell Investments Center. … Read More
Office vacancy hits another record in downtown Seattle despite new tech leases
Seattle’s commercial real estate market continues to struggle amid remote work and broader pressures including tech layoffs and companies using AI to operate with leaner teams. … Read More
Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman departs after leading Seattle real estate giant for 20 years
Kelman joined Redfin in 2005, a year after it launched, and helped guide the company from a small Seattle startup into a nationally known real estate brokerage and technology platform. … Read More
Tech Moves: Acumatica hires CPO; former Amazon manager named new mayor of Bellevue
Tech Moves tracks the latest personnel changes across the Pacific Northwest tech industry. … Read More
Report: Meta plans to cut around 10% of Reality Labs workforce
The division — which employs roughly 15,000 people — has a strong presence in the Seattle area and is responsible for the company’s “metaverse” technologies that work in conjunction with augmented and virtual reality. … Read More
Amazon supersizes its Walmart rivalry with new big-box retail concept
The e-commerce giant plans to test a new big-box retail concept outside Chicago that mirrors the scale of a Walmart superstore, while layering in Amazon-style technology that blends in-store shopping with app-based ordering. … Read More
