Welcome to Axis ProRata, where we take just 10 minutes to get you smarter on the collision of tech, business, and politics.

Sponsored by Silicon Valley Bank, Ideas Bank here. On today's show, Dyson gives up on electric vehicles and why Hooters, yeah, that Hooters. Just merged with a pharmaceutical company.

But first, Silicon Valley's China problem.

So Chinese officials are meeting in Washington, D.C. this week to hopefully de-escalate trade tensions.

But at the same time, China-related pressure has been mounting in Silicon Valley.

Specifically, pressure to stand with the protesters

in Hong Kong, who many believe are pushing for the sorts of democratic reforms that are in line

with tech industry values. So far, though, tech industry executives seem to be following the money

instead of their morals. Three recent examples. First, Apple pulled a crowdsourced mapping app that

Hong Kong protesters had used to identify blocked streets and police presence.

Second, Google pulled a game whereby people could play as the Hong Kong protesters. And three, Activision Blizzard took prize money away from a professional gamer who spoke out in favor of the protesters during a post-match interview.

Blizzard also fired the people who

interviewed them. All of this, of course, is extremely complicated in a global economy. And for years,

we've seen, for example, U.S. entertainment companies censor the films and TV shows that they

send to China. And then there was the gap last year, apologizing for not including Taiwan on a

t-shirt showing a map of China, and both Delta and Marriott, apologizing for listing Tibet and Taiwan as separate countries on their websites.

But the thing is, the Gap and Delta and Marriott, they haven't spent the past few years on the forefront of American social politics.

They haven't ever really claimed to be trying to make the

world a better place. That's almost the exclusive province of the tech companies. And so far,

they're being shown to be paper preachers. In 15 seconds, we'll go deeper with Axios chief technology

correspondent Inafreed. But first, this. This episode is brought to you by Silicon Valley Bank.

Know everything about coding, but not so much about

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