Can Microsoft avoid the ghost of Clippy?

Bench Accounting roller coaster: After a surprise shutdown announcement on Friday that shocked customers, Vancouver, B.C.-based startup Bench Accounting said Monday it will be acquired by Employer.com. Read more.

“Everybody wants more accurate weather forecasts,” said Jayesh Gupta, one of the Microsoft vets behind Silurian, a startup using AI to improve the science of predicting whether it will rain tomorrow or not. Better forecasts can have massive economic and safety impacts across industries such as clean energy and grid management, transportation, agriculture and other fields. Read more.

A Seattle nonprofit’s “big, hairy, audacious goal” is to have an artist-in-residence working at every tech company in 10 years. Future Arts is on a mission to bridge the wage gap between tech and art and strengthen the connections between those working in tech and those creating tech-infused art in the city. Read more.

Hot Links:

• Tech giants including Microsoft and Amazon are expanding their nuclear power projects. (CNBC)

• Xiao Wang, CEO at Seattle startup Boundless Immigration, commented on the debate over H-1B visas: “I wish we weren't trying to solve systemic problems in 140 character soundbites.” (LinkedIn) 

• "Coach Prime," a Prime Video show featuring football head coach Deion Sanders, released a trailer for Season 3. (YouTube)