From a hush-hush Apple meeting to mysterious executive departures, 9 of the most important tech stories Business Insider reported in 2018

Tim Cook

Business Insider's team of tech journalists was first to report some of the most important developments in tech in 2018.
From the surprise departure of Google Cloud CEO Diane Greene to the internal turmoil at AR pioneer Magic Leap and the problems leading up to Uber's fatal autonomous-car crash, the industry has had an eventful year.
Check out the list below for some great reads you may have missed, or to refresh your perspective and challenge your assumptions as you prepare for the new year in tech.

From massive, multibillion dollar acquisitions to boardroom shake-ups and disturbing scandals, the tech industry had an eventful 2018.

Business Insider's team of tech journalists was first to report some of the most important developments, from the surprise departure of Google Cloud CEO Diane Greene to the internal turmoil at augmented-reality (AR) pioneer Magic Leap and the problems leading up to Uber's fatal autonomous-car crash.

As the tech world moves ahead into 2019, we decided to distill the year's catalog of exclusive stories and investigations into a list of the nine most important reports. Check out the list below for some great reads you may have missed, or to refresh your perspective and challenge your assumptions as you prepare for the new year in tech.

Microsoft in talks to acquire GitHub

A Microsoft acquisition of GitHub — the popular platform for software developers — seemed like a wild notion when Business Insider's Julie Bort and Becky Peterson broke the news this summer that the two companies were in discussions for a multibillion-dollar deal.

Within days, however, Microsoft announced plans to buy GitHub for $7.5 billion, sending shockwaves throughout the tech world and spurring competitor IBM to acquire Red Hat.

Read the full story here »

The inside story of Travis Kalanick's downfall at Uber

A lot of stories have been written about the internal turmoil at Uber that led to the ousting of CEO Travis Kalanick.

Business Insider's chief tech correspondent, Julie Bort, wrote the definitive account, speaking to dozens of people over six months. She unearthed important new details, revelations, and behind-the-scenes events that set in motion a boardroom coup that's sure to be analyzed by business-school professors for years to come.

Read the full story here »

Apple's secret app-developer meeting

Kif Leswing's fascinating and detailed report about an invite-only meeting with app developers that Apple hosted in a New York City luxury loft shed new light on the iPhone-maker's strategy to focus on subscriptions.

With Apple's recent shift to focusing on its "services" business, building a reliable app-subscriptions revenue stream and keeping developers happy will become increasingly vital to the company's success.