We shopped Amazon’s first Black Friday NFL broadcast

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we assess the outcome of the drama at OpenAI — considering what the removal and ultimate return of its CEO Sam Altman means for Microsoft. While Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella earned kudos for masterfully navigating the mess, the situation also showed how the company was vulnerable to being blindsided due to OpenAI's convoluted structure, which ultimately hasn’t fundamentally changed.

Also this week: Amazon’s move into car-buying, and the Seattle region’s dwindling flock of unicorns.

Listen here, or subscribe to GeekWire in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Black Friday meets the NFL on Amazon: We went hands-on with Amazon’s attempt to integrate football with e-commerce advertising, as the tech giant showed QR codes during commercial breaks that linked to Black Friday deals on Amazon.com or other websites. 

• The company’s Black Friday broadcast is the latest example of how it’s using sports streaming to drive growth in other areas of its business.

• Amazon's NFL viewership numbers for Thursday Night Football are up 26% year-over-year. Read more.

Sonic Symphony in Seattle: Do you love the music of “Sonic the Hedgehog?” You’re in luck. On Jan. 4-5 in Seattle, a full rock band and orchestra will put on a live performance of an assortment of fan-favorite tunes from the video-game series. Read more.

Hot Links:

• Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella “couldn’t pay close attention to his native India playing Australia in the Cricket World Cup because he found himself in the middle of another game with more action and a whole lot more at stake.” (Wall Street Journal)

• Shoppers at Bellevue Square in the Seattle region will soon get a glimpse of the Tesla Cybertruck electric pickup truck. (DowntownBellevue.com)

• Microsoft and Amazon are among the companies that have paused their marketing campaigns on X (Twitter) since Elon Musk endorsed an antisemitic conspiracy theory. (New York Times)