ATD Week in Review: Elon Musk’s Hyperloop Plans and Zynga’s New Org Chart

hyperloop In case you missed anything, here’s a quick roundup of some of the news that powered AllThingsD this week:

Mark your calendars, Apple and Android upgraders: Last weekend, we learned that the next iPhone will be unveiled on Sept. 10 (a date already shared by no fewer than three other tech events). On Friday, HTC announced that its flagship phone, the HTC One, is finally coming to Verizon next week.
Lauren Goode reviewed the Lumia 1020, Nokia’s new smartphone with a 41-megapixel camera: “I was impressed by its camera,” she writes, “… But it’s important to keep in mind that the Lumia 1020 is a phone first, camera second.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk published his conceptual design for the Hyperloop, a “really rapid transit system” that would (in theory) get passengers from San Francisco to Los Angeles in under 30 minutes. At first, it seemed as though Musk would take a hands-off approach to the project, but on Monday he said he’d “probably end up” at least building a prototype himself.
A research study from TDG suggests that those who have some sort of Web content or Internet access on their TVs are twice as likely to become cord-cutters.
Under new CEO Don Mattrick, Zynga restructured its top ranks, and three C-suite executives will leave the company. Here’s what the new org chart looks like.
Amazon has never divulged Kindle sales numbers, but Morgan Stanley estimated in a new report that the company will sell $4.5 billion worth of Kindle e-readers and tablets this year, up 26 percent from 2012.
In other Amazon news, the company is hiring for a warehouse in New Jersey. Details are still sketchy, but the job listings may indicate a New York City future for its grocery-delivery business, AmazonFresh.
AllThingsD reported this week on two new initiatives happening inside of Facebook. The first is a “VIP-only app” that would make it easier for celebrities to stay on top of what their fans are saying. And Facebook is testing a product that would let you buy stuff on mobile apps using your Facebook login; it’s expected to launch in the next month or so.
Unlike some weeks, when the company makes news itself, two outsiders made news on Apple’s behalf this week: First, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison said the future of an Apple without Steve Jobs is not a mystery.
Then, billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn (who, on a separate note, just lost his bid to stop a Dell buyout vote) made a large investment in Apple. That announcement sent Apple shares way up and over the $500 mark for the first time since January. Icahn said the shares were undervalued and that Apple should buy them back at $525 a pop.