Coolest EVs at the Seattle Auto Show | Zillow names new COO

The buzz at this weekend’s Seattle International Auto Show is likely to be around Volkswagen’s “ID. Buzz,” the hotly anticipated electric van that puts a modern spin on the classic microbus. GeekWire took a test drive and then “shopped” for more EVs on the showroom floor that are sure to turn heads. 

Tech Moves: Zillow named a new chief operating officer, while two longtime execs stepped down. Vouched, Fred Hutch, and AGC Biologics also announced leadership changes. Read more.

Osyte, a Seattle fintech startup led by a former Russell Investments manager, raised $4 million to fuel growth of its software used by investors who manage multi-asset portfolios. 

• See all recent Pacific Northwest startup fundings.

Texas-based AST SpaceMobile says the New Glenn rockets built by Blue Origin will be launching some of the satellites for AST's space-based cellular broadband network. Read more.

"Software was not an industry. Desktop computing didn’t even exist." That’s how historian Margaret O’Mara puts Microsoft's startup era in perspective on a special episode of the GeekWire Podcast, part of our Microsoft @ 50 series. Read more and listen here.

• Related: Microsoft’s startup story: How the company became a tech giant, and what we can learn from it today

UW computer science professor Shyam Gollakota says he’ll use money from a recent Infosys Prize honor to help commercialize new headphone technology that uses AI to create a “sound bubble.” Read more.

Hot Links:

• Elon Musk has added Microsoft to his lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that the companies have attempted to “monopolize the generative AI market.” (The Verge)

• Microsoft’s $150 million offer to enhance U.S. cybersecurity was a strategic move to grab a bigger piece of the federal IT budget, a new investigation alleges. (ProPublica)

• Amazon is taking on Hims & Hers, rolling out new beauty and lifestyle-related treatment plans with upfront pricing and delivery via Prime. (TechCrunch; LinkedIn)