Dear Reader, welcome to the April Tech Round-Up.

Lockdown prevails! From Singapore to Sydney, most of us are working from home. We dedicate this edition to the virtual teams solving complex problems around the globe.

From our homes to yours, best wishes.

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Tech Deal of the Month:

With the odds stacked against them, the team at digital travel company Webjet just raised $346m during the COVID-19 epidemic - via Zoom!

Your March update on the Coronavirus:

Internet traffic reflects the new human reality: Internet traffic in San Francisco is up ~ 50%, NYC and Melbourne are up ~30%, but Berlin and Sydney are up only 10%.

Try this COVID-19 analytics site to compare national sentiment: Check out the nexus between confirmed cases, media coverage, and sentiment by country (why are the Aussies so relaxed?)

The ethical dilemma of using technology during an epidemic: Tracing apps produce tantalizing data for governments and corporations, but they also infringe on COVID-19 victims’ privacy.

My home office just got hacked: The sudden shift in how we work has created serious cyber-security risks for both companies and their employees.

How the COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping education: Schools may be revolutionized when the pandemic passes.

Asia Tech News:

China’s logistics bounce back reflects a broader recovery: Orders are being placed and companies are hiring again as the PRC bounces back.

Kargo, the Jakarta logistics startup, just raised US$31 million: Applying the concepts behind Uber to trucking and logistics, Kargo enables customers to order trucks using a mobile app.

The Vietnamese tech platform that helps millennials into their first home: Homebase buys homes jointly with its customers, then rents them the share they don’t own.

Old family money is making waves in Indonesia’s tech startup scene: Read about the five families that are sculpting Indonesia’s startup ecosystem.

Online travel companies are still optimistic about their prospects, despite being hit hard: Adapting quickly to the current “hero to zero” environment is key to survival.

In other Tech News:

The global financial crisis gave birth to Fintech: What will the COVID-19 pandemic bring?

Recently raised PE funds are likely to emerge strongest from the epidemic: Nearly $400 billion in dry powder is yet to be deployed in the new post-COVID-19 world.

Digital transformation is now real: How COVID-19 has sparked innovation in tech companies.

Zoom Video’s stock is sky-high. Will it fall to earth when the pandemic ends?

The COVID-19 crisis could be the turning point for Big Tech: Tech companies are finally in the good books of European policymakers.

Videos and Podcasts of the Month:

Scientists and doctors at MIT are building innovative low-cost ventilators: Hospital ventilators are running short. MIT may just have the solution.

Podcast: Behind the recent layoffs.

And now for something different:

Not a tech story: This month an Audi A8 ran the illegal Cannonball Run race against the clock from NYC to Redondo Beach in 26.5 hours. During a pandemic - what were they thinking?

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