The Daily Crunch 10/17/16

President ≠ Startup CEO, Tesla teases further tie-up with Panasonic and Apple's evolving car plans. All that and more in The Daily Crunch for October 17, 2016. And if you're injured in a drone-related accident, call this number to find out more about what we can do for you.

1. The government is not, ideally, a tech company

It sounds like President Barack Obama is at least a little tired of receiving leadership tips from tech folks. During the closing remarks at last week's White House Frontiers Conference, the President briefly digressed to talk about why the lessons of leading a tech co. don't translate to the leadership of the free world.

It basically comes down to the scope of your mandate, which in the case of a social app doesn't really include the wellbeing of everyone within a nation.

2. Tesla's sales pitch for SolarCity deal continues

Tesla is really trying to provide as many reasons as possible for its acquisition of SolarCity to go through, and now it's effectively holding up a potential long-term investment in Buffalo as a carrot. The company announced a non-binding agreement between itself and battery partner Panasonic to build solar cells and modules at a facility in the city. This will only happen if the SolarCity acquisition happens, however.

3. Why Apple's car strategy shifted

Apple's car plans seemed incredibly ambitious when first rumored, but now the company is setting its sights on a different goal, with the aim of working on autonomous systems instead of hardware. It seems like an unusual move, given that as a provider of these systems it'll have strong competition from a number of dedicated companies, Google, Uber and carmakers themselves. I wouldn't make any long-term bets on Apple doing anything deep in the car world based on these reports.

4. Watch all of Trust Disrupted now

What the heck is bitcoin? I feel like I once had a vague understanding, but it's gone now. A good chance to recap and find out more about the tech, and the blockchain basics that undergird it, is available now via the TechCrunch Trust Disrupted web series. It's got NYT's Nathaniel Popper as a kind of spiritual guide, so check it out if you're at all curious about the cryptocurrency torrent that seemed to come and be gone in an instant.

5. Drones as a new cause on the IR list

A pitcher for a team in the MLB Playoffs is now injured because of a drone. The bigger news here is that his favorite Star Wars movie is apparently The Phantom Menace, which means he deserves what he got.

6. Thiel donates $1.25 million to Trump

Ever the iconoclast, Thiel is backing Trump at the oddest possible time, when the marginally successful reality show's host reputation is in tattered scraps because of many accusations by women about his abusive behavior. It's creating quite a stir on tech Twitter, since Thiel has allies who are vociferously anti-Trump (aka sane).

7. Salesforce's new Chief Equality Officer wants to "go beyond diversity and beyond inclusion"

Salesforce has a first among its peers with the introduction of a Chief Equality Officer c-level position, and Tony Prophet is the first to claim the title. Our own Megan Rose Dickey sat down to chat with him about his new role, and the progress Salesforce still needs to make in creating a more equal workforce and working environment.