Amazon

"This never would have happened if they cared about lives over productivity," the sister of one of the victims commented on social media.

The company says its team had "worked quickly" in response to the tornado.

The roof collapsed as the storm hit the warehouse on Friday.

Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement the company is "deeply saddened" by the deaths.

One of those who died, Clayton Cope, 29, spoke to his family on the phone shortly before the building in the town of Edwardsville, Illinois was struck.

Fresh restrictions are also planned to govern their use of customers' data, and to prevent the firms ranking their own services above competitors' in search results and app stores.

The measures are intended to overhaul how the EU regulates digital markets.

Large fines and break-ups are threatened for non-compliance.

It is proposed that if companies refuse to obey, they could be forced to hand over up to 10% of their European turnover.

It is designed to activate only when residents are out, works indoors, and is limited to one floor of a building.

The firm also unveiled an online games-streaming service and a voice-activated screen that swivels about.

But one campaign group described the drone camera as Amazon's "most chilling home surveillance product" yet.

"It's difficult to imagine why Amazon thinks anyone wants flying internet cameras linked up to a data-gathering company in the privacy of their own home," said Silkie Carlo from Big Brother Watch.

Amazon Pharmacy will make its debut in Bangalore and it may be trialled in other Indian cities.

The move comes as the online drugs business has been given a major boost during the coronavirus pandemic.

This year US technology giants have invested billions of dollars in the Indian economy.

The Amazon Pharmacy service offers prescription, over-the-counter and traditional Ayurveda medication as well as basic health devices.

Amazon sales soared 40% in the three months ending June, while Apple saw a surge in purchases of its iPhones and other hardware.

At Facebook, the number of people on its platforms, which include WhatsApp and Instagram, jumped by 15%.

The gains come as the firms face scrutiny over their size and power.

At a hearing in Washington on Wednesday, lawmakers grilled the companies about whether they were abusing their dominance to quash rivals, noting the sharp contrast between their fortunes and many other firms.

The retail giant has faced lawsuits in both Europe and the US claiming it is not doing enough to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in its warehouses.

One US union accused the firm of profiting from the pandemic while leaving its workers unprotected.

Amazon said it had invested billions in COVID-19 initiatives.

The firm is now testing a wearable device that alerts workers when they are violating social distancing rules, according to CNBC, which obtained a memo about the technology.

The goal is to help health chiefs model the consequences of moving resources to best tackle the coronavirus pandemic.

Three US tech firms are aiding the effort - Amazon, Microsoft and Palantir - as well as London-based Faculty AI.

The plan is expected to be signed off by Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

"Every hospital is going to be thinking: Have we got enough ventilators? Well we need to keep ours because who knows what's going to happen - and that might not be the optimal allocation of ventilators," explained a source in one of the tech companies involved.

The online retailer told Reuters it had also removed "tens of thousands" of overpriced health products from unscrupulous sellers.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) expressed concern about some misleading Amazon listings earlier this month, including fake treatments.

The virus, which causes Covid-19, has killed about 2,800 people worldwide.

The WHO said fake coronavirus claims online were causing mass confusion, and urged tech giants to combat the spread of misinformation.

The second instalment of the eighth and final series was not supposed to be broadcast until Sunday evening.

But some Amazon Prime members were able to watch it several hours before that.

"We regret that for a short time Amazon customers in Germany were able to access episode two of season eight of Game of Thrones," an Amazon spokesman said.

"This was an error and has been rectified."

It may have been taken down soon after it was uploaded, but it was long enough for many fans to view the whole episode.

Shares in Alphabet jumped above $1,000 in after-hours trading after the company reported sales up 24% to $27.8bn.

Amazon, the world's biggest e-commerce site, saw sales rise 34% to $43.7bn - nearly the size of Slovenia's economy last year.

Meanwhile, Microsoft's profit beat estimates on gains from cloud services.

Alphabet's profits for the three months to 30 September rose to $7.8bn, from $5.6bn for the same quarter last year.

The company's chief financial officer Ruth Porat said the firm was delighted with the way it was performing.