SpaceX moon orbit passenger announced; Lyft, Bird scooters go live in Santa Monica’s pilot program; Snapchat to publish CBC news content

SpaceX Lunar Trip Passenger Named

Hawthorne-based and Elon Musk-led Space Exploration Technologies Corp. will send Japanese fashion designer and Zozo founder Yusaku Maezawa for a trip around the moon on a Big Falcon rocket (BFR). Socaltech reports Maezawa will be accompanied by eight “artists and cultural figures,” and is accepting applications for the trip. The amount Maezawa is paying for this trip has not yet been disclosed.

Lyft Deploys Scooters in Santa Monica

The Santa Monica pilot program for dockless electric scooters launched Sept. 17, and Lyft Inc.’s scooters launched today, according to TechCrunch. Alongside Santa Monica-based Bird Rides Inc., Lyft also competes against Uber Technologies Inc. and Neutron Holdings Inc.’s Lime Scooters. Lyft will deploy 250 scooters on the streets of Santa Monica — but if they venture outside the city, operators will be fined, according to the new regulations.

CBC News Inks Revenue Share Deal With Snapchat

Canadian public broadcast station Canadian Broadcast Corp. will publish mobile, short-form editorial content on Venice-based Snap Inc.’s Snapchat app, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The Snapchat Discover platform will now produce CBC News social-specific editions five times per week and the goal is to encourage young Canadians to become interested in the news. CBC News will share an undisclosed amount of revenue generated from this effort with Snapchat, which reports it has roughly 10 million users in Canada.