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when is uppababy v3 coming out

when is uppababy v3 coming out UPPAbaby Cruz V3 Stroller

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when is uppababy v3 coming out UPPAbaby Cruz V3 Strollerby UPPAbaby Babesta Pick Best Full Size Single Stroller for NYC Families Category: Full size strollers Single strollers Travel systems Birth to toddler strollers Certifications: GREENGUARD Gold JPMA Certified REACH certified leather Warranty: 3 year transferable The UPPAbaby Cruz V3 is a 26. 5 lb full size single stroller suitable from birth (with the included infant insert) to 50 lbs. Its fully reversible, lay flat seat, 4 position one hand recline,

by UPPAbaby  |  Babesta Pick — Best Full-Size Single Stroller for NYC Families

Category: Full-size strollers  |  Single strollers  |  Travel systems  |  Birth-to-toddler strollers

Certifications: GREENGUARD® Gold  |  JPMA Certified  |  REACH-certified leather

Warranty: 3-year transferable

The UPPAbaby Cruz V3 is a 26.5 lb full-size single stroller suitable from birth (with the included infant insert) to 50 lbs. Its fully reversible, lay-flat seat, 4-position one-hand recline, integrated foot barrier for carriage mode, and magnetic harness buckle make it one of the most genuinely newborn-ready full-size strollers on the market — no separate bassinet required for the first weeks. As NYC’s expert baby boutique, Babesta considers the Cruz V3 the sweet spot for families who want full-size quality and a premium push without the bulk of a modular platform stroller.

The Cruz V3 is the ideal pick for first-time parents expecting one child who want a stroller that works from the hospital through preschool, delivers a smooth ride on NYC sidewalks, and still folds compactly enough for a car trunk or elevator lobby. If you’re planning to expand to two or more children in a single stroller, consider the UPPAbaby Vista V3 instead.

 

Specifications

Stroller weight (frame + seat)

26.5 lbs

Frame weight only

17 lbs

Seat weight only

9.5 lbs

Unfolded dimensions

37.5″ L × 22.5″ W × 41.8″ H

Folded dimensions (with seat)

17.5″ L × 22.5″ W × 33″ H

Folded dimensions (without seat)

13.5″ L × 22.5″ W × 30″ H

Fold type

One-step trigger fold; footrest and bumper bar tuck in automatically; self-standing

Suitable from birth?

Yes — with included infant insert in lay-flat reclined seat + integrated foot barrier

Suitable without accessories?

From birth with infant insert; up to 50 lbs

Max child weight

50 lbs (approx. age 4–5)

Basket weight capacity

30 lbs — extra-large, easy-access

Seat orientation

Reversible: forward-facing or parent-facing

Seat recline positions

4 positions, one-hand adjustment; full lay-flat for sleep

Leg rest

Adjustable with one hand

Handlebar

Telescoping, one-hand height adjustment; REACH-certified leather grip

Suspension

Enhanced FlexRide™ — all-wheel, frame-integrated for smooth city ride

Tires

Never-flat polyurethane; front wheel lock with visual indicator; reflective accents for low-light visibility

Canopy

UPF 50+ water-repellent; integrated sun shield; zip-out extension; mesh ventilation panels

Harness

5-point with magnetic buckle; infant-to-toddler tapered fit; no-rethread adjustment

Frame material

Durable aluminum; painted finish

Seat fabric

100% polyester; GREENGUARD® Gold certified; premium fabrics with leather details

Certifications

GREENGUARD® Gold; JPMA certified; REACH-certified leather

Warranty

3-year transferable

Included in box

Stroller, infant insert, bug shield, rain shield

 

Best For / Not For

Best For: First-time parents planning on one child, families who want a full-size premium push without a modular platform, parents building a UPPAbaby travel system with the Mesa or Aria infant car seat, elevator-building NYC residents, and anyone who needs a newborn-ready stroller without buying a separate bassinet. Also strong for parents who walk long distances daily and need a stroller that handles NYC sidewalks and park terrain comfortably.

Not For: Families planning to convert to a double stroller (choose the Vista V3 instead), parents in walkup buildings who need a carry-up stroller (the Joolz Aer2 is better for that), or parents who need an airplane-overhead-bin stroller. At 26.5 lbs it is a daily city stroller, not a travel stroller.

Available Colors & Pricing

Colors

Jake (black), Callum (blue), Greyson (charcoal), Evelyn, Julian, Owen, Savannah (white/grey), Ada — all $899.99

Frame options

Graphite or Carbon (matte) — matched per colorway

Availability

Most colors in stock at Babesta; allow 2–3 weeks for order fulfillment

 

Is it suitable for my baby's age?

Newborn (0–3 months)

Yes — seat reclines fully flat with included infant insert and integrated foot barrier for carriage mode. No separate bassinet required for newborn use (though the V3 Bassinet is available separately for maximum lie-flat comfort).

Infant (3–12 months)

Yes — seat reclined or semi-reclined, infant insert still in use, compatible with Mesa or Aria infant car seat for travel system use.

Toddler (1–4 years)

Yes — forward or parent-facing, 4-position one-hand recline, adjustable leg rest, magnetic harness, up to 50 lbs.

 

Is it good for NYC / city use?

Yes — the Cruz V3 is one of Babesta’s strongest recommendations for NYC parents who stroll daily. The Enhanced FlexRide suspension handles cracked sidewalks and dropped curbs better than most full-size strollers, and the never-flat tires mean no emergency trips to get a flat fixed mid-walk. The one-step fold is quick and intuitive; the footrest and bumper bar tuck in automatically so there are no extra steps when you’re managing a baby and a cab door at the same time.

The 22.5″ width is notably narrower than the Vista V3 (25.7″), which matters in NYC: restaurant aisles, elevator doors, and narrow hallway entries are all more manageable. The 30 lb basket is best-in-class for a single stroller and handles a full grocery bag without issue.

NYC note: The Cruz V3 folds compactly and self-stands, but it is not a subway-carry stroller. It works best for families with a car, a building elevator, or a ground-floor entrance. For subway-heavy days, many Cruz V3 families pair it with a lightweight like the Joolz Aer2.

 

Quick Comparison: Cruz V3 vs. Key Alternatives

Feature

Cruz V3

Vista V3

Joolz Aer2

Dragonfly

Weight

26.5 lbs

27.6 lbs

14.3 lbs

With seat 21.8 lbs; with bassinet 23.1lbs

Basket capacity

30 lbs

30 lbs

17.6 lbs

22 lbs; rear pocket 5lbs

Newborn-ready (no extra purchase)

Yes — incl. infant insert

No

Yes — incl. baby net

Yes when purchased with bassinet

Converts to double

No

Yes

No

No

Subway/walkup friendly

Manageable

Harder

Best in class

Good

 

Car Seat Compatibility

No adapter needed

UPPAbaby Mesa, UPPAbaby Aria

Adapter required (sold separately)

Clek, Cybex, Bugaboo x Nuna

Bassinet compatible?

Yes — UPPAbaby Cruz V3 Bassinet attaches directly; sold separately

 

What’s Included

       UPPAbaby Cruz V3 stroller frame

       Full-size reversible toddler seat with lay-flat recline

       Infant insert (for newborn use from birth)

       Bug shield

       Rain shield

       3-year transferable warranty

 

Optional Add-Ons Available at Babesta

       UPPAbaby Cruz V3 Bassinet — for full lie-flat newborn use; attaches directly without adapters (strongly recommended for 0–3 months)

       UPPAbaby Mesa Infant Car Seat — clicks in without adapters for instant travel system

       UPPAbaby Aria Infant Car Seat — clicks in without adapters

       Car seat adapters for Clek, Cybex, Bugaboo x Nuna, Chicco, Maxi-Cosi, Peg Perego (sold separately per brand)

       PiggyBack® Ride-Along Board — for an older sibling standing at the back

       Cozy Ganoosh — footmuff/sleeping bag for cold NYC winters

       Cup holder and parent organizer accessories

 

Babesta Pick — Why We Carry It

The Cruz V3 solves a problem that a lot of NYC first-time parents don’t anticipate: the other premium single strollers in this price range either require you to buy a separate bassinet for newborn use, or they’re so light that the ride quality suffers on cracked sidewalks. The Cruz V3 does neither. The included infant insert plus the lay-flat seat means you genuinely can take it home from the hospital. The FlexRide suspension means the push is smooth enough that you’ll want to keep strolling — which in NYC, where parents walk miles a day, is not a small thing.

We’ve also found that the magnetic harness buckle is one of those features that sounds like marketing until you’ve wrestled a squirming 18-month-old into a conventional buckle in the rain outside a restaurant. After that, you will never want a non-magnetic buckle again.

The one trade-off we are honest about: if there’s any chance you’ll want a double stroller, the Cruz V3 cannot convert. In that case, the Vista V3 at the same $899.99 price is the smarter long-term investment. But for the family that is confident in one child and wants the best single full-size stroller in the UPPAbaby lineup, the Cruz V3 is it.

 

Babesta Services on This Purchase

When you buy the Cruz V3 from Babesta, you get:

       Free in-store assembly and full stroller demo — we walk you through every fold, recline, and harness adjustment

       Home delivery below Canal Street NYC (assembled) and same-day courier delivery in NYC/Brooklyn (unassembled)

       Hold it until you’re ready — buy now, take delivery when baby arrives, no rush

       Price match guarantee — found it cheaper? We’ll match it

       Registry support — add the Cruz V3 and compatible accessories to your Babesta registry with expert guidance

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use this stroller from birth without buying a bassinet?

Yes — the Cruz V3 is one of the only full-size strollers at this price point that is genuinely newborn-ready out of the box. The included infant insert, combined with the seat’s full lay-flat recline and integrated foot barrier, creates a carriage-mode position suitable from day one. That said, Babesta does recommend the separately sold UPPAbaby Cruz Bassinet for the first 3 months if you want true lie-flat comfort and a fully enclosed sleep environment.

What is the difference between the Cruz V3 and the Vista V3?

Both share the same FlexRide suspension, magnetic harness, canopy quality, and 30 lb basket. The key differences: the Cruz V3 is a single-only stroller (it cannot convert to a double), is 2 lbs lighter (26.5 vs. 27.6 lbs), and is 2.9″ narrower (22.8″ vs. 25.7″). The Vista V3 can expand to a double or triple stroller with accessories. If you might have a second child, choose the Vista V3. If you’re confident in one child and want a slightly lighter, narrower, more streamlined stroller, choose the Cruz V3. Babesta’s team can walk you through this decision in person.

Which infant car seats are compatible without adapters?

The UPPAbaby Mesa and UPPAbaby Aria click directly onto the Cruz V3 frame with no adapters needed, creating a seamless travel system. For Clek, Cybex, Bugaboo x Nuna, Chicco, Maxi-Cosi, and Peg Perego, brand-specific adapters are sold separately. Ask the Babesta team for the right adapter for your car seat brand.

Does the bassinet come included?

No — the UPPAbaby V3 Bassinet is sold separately. It attaches directly to the Cruz V3 frame without adapters. Babesta recommends it for the first 3 months, particularly for parents who want a dedicated sleep-safe lie-flat environment for their newborn.

Is it good for Central Park and outdoor walks?

Yes — the FlexRide suspension and never-flat tires handle grass, gravel, and mixed terrain well for everyday park use. The Cruz V3 is not a jogging stroller. For trail or beach use, stick to paved or packed surfaces.

Can I try it in person?

Yes — the Cruz V3 is on the floor at Babesta Tribeca, 56 Warren Street. Our team will walk you through the fold, the infant insert setup, the recline positions, and — if relevant — the side-by-side difference with the Vista V3 so you can decide between them confidently.

Can I put this on my baby registry?

Yes — the Cruz V3 is a top registry pick at Babesta. A Babesta registry comes with exclusive perks and services, and our team can advise on which accessories to register for from day one versus which ones to wait on based on your lifestyle.

Does it fit through a standard NYC doorway?

Yes — at 22.8″ wide, the Cruz V3 passes through standard 28″–32″ interior doorways, elevator doors, and most restaurant and retail aisles without issue. It is one of the narrower full-size strollers in its class.

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Timothy Bumpus
Lowell, US
★★★★★ 2
Good, but only for complete beginners who haven’t seen the tutorials on the Godot website
Format: Kindle
Skippable with free tutorials found on the web both from official and unofficial resources. A good starting block for those who are completely new to the concept and want to get started with Godot.
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Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2023
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L. Schmiesing
Lowell, US
★★★★★ 5
Superbly written, relatable, important, and humanistic
Format: Hardcover
I purchased the hardback of this book when I heard that Meta was trying to block its publication. And I’m so glad I did. The book was a jaw-dropping, gripping read that held me in a trance. It’s my understanding that the legal efforts on Meta’s part to have the book blocked have only made it more popular. After reading the book, I’m not surprised. Meta is run by short-sighted, narcissistic, and self-important people who often act like idiot toddlers. Mine. Mine. Gimme. Gimme. Cake. More. More. Once I received the book, I was reluctant to dive in, thinking it would be a challenging read with technology and boring stuff, but I was wrong with that assessment. The book is superbly written, relatable, and humanistic, and made me proud of Sarah for her bravery in becoming a whistleblower. A New Zealand native, Sarah is a lawyer who worked as a diplomat for the United Nations before doggedly selling herself on the staff at Facebook for a job within the organization that she felt could better the world. After working in the upper stratosphere echelons of Facebook for around six years, she has the receipts to prove that the dream of what it could be, became a nightmare. She lays the groundwork for her assertions against Facebook/Meta building her credibility with the reader as she starts from her youth and before the hire. Eventually becoming an intricate player within the Facebook organization, she is a brilliantly smart person (and writer), and she struggles with the culture and personalities of the privileged and out-of-touch leadership who carelessly treat her not as a person, but as a tool. She is often in physical danger too! I was shocked at how often the top leadership - Mark, other top execs, and Sheryl Sandberg - could have cared less about Sarah’s pain, pressure, obstacles, and danger. Not to mention their ignoring Sarah’s wisdom and advice. I’d heard of Sheryl Sandberg – she of the hot book – Lean In. As Oprah and CEOs and other high flyers applauded Sheryl’s awesomeness and her book, I recall at the time feeling intrigued, but super skeptical. See me giving a side eye to the situation and rejecting being given life coaching by a billionaire. It turns out my instincts were right. It’s easier to lean in when you have a staff of nannies, maids, cooks, toadies, and private jets. But she expects everyone to be just as work-driven and productive as her. If you’ve seen the great show Succession – think of the personal assistants portrayed on that show. Their job is to just do – never question – no matter how stupid the task or how impossible the ask. (Do you remember the scene on funeral day when Kendall Roy asks his fast-walking-in-heels personal assistant why she has a meeting scheduled with him and she says in a nervous sing-song – oh, we can talk about it then. He stops walking and presses her for an answer on the spot and she softballs intimating that she is thinking about making a change – and he’s pissed and says like thanks a lot for bringing this up today, my father just died. But she didn’t – he did…. Whatever. You cannot win). Another example. Think Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada asking for the yet-unpublished Harry Potter books to be delivered to her children that the same day. There is a story in Sarah’s book where while traveling in Mexico with the top execs, she gets a frantic call from her husband – there is a horrible situation going on at home in Manhattan with their nanny and the baby (for spoilers – I won’t tell you what was happening but it’s scary as heck). Sarah, trapped and traveling in a car, relays or shares the story about the in-real-time event, because . . . how could you not! Later, in her review, she is told that it was inappropriate for her to talk about her personal life and to basically keep her mouth shut and focus on the job. Lean in and keep your mothering and baby problems to yourself! And part of the problem with all this is that Sarah is not even an “assistant” – she is part of the team. But she is often treated like a body. Another time in a review they said she was ‘difficult to reach’ during the review period and she had to remind them that she was in an actual coma in the hospital. Still – they thought it pertinent and left the negative content as a strike against her. I found the number of personal cruelties to Sarah abhorrent – but Sarah is not a whiner. No. She stayed because she believed in her work and the possible differences she (and presumably, hopefully? others) could make. But the world-changing greed on Facebook’s part to ignore moral and privacy issues, leverage people’s vulnerabilities, profit on the backs of victims, to control the flow of information, and have a pay-to-play mindset in working with an assortment of hate organizations, movements, and autocrats, and to take it further into doing whatever they want as long as they keep growing and gaining more users for their platforms changed everything. Meta is a world gobbler. A globe-stroking Golem who has Thanos power and it’s scarier than you know what. And Facebook had FACEBOOK employees embedded in the Trump campaign to assist them in maximizing the algorithms and giving them whatever tools and access that others didn’t receive. Millions of dollars were spent targeting and spreading the thousands of Trump messages . . . saying God knows what. (Eating cats and dogs?) Harness the press. Harness the information sent to the masses. Pay to ride. Own the world. I’m not sure how Sarah got away with publishing the book, but I applaud the publisher (and I’m assuming a team of lawyers) for going forward with the publication. Read it. Learn from it. I have. But now what do I do? I use Facebook and Instagram– I need to for my business. Don’t I? Maybe Facebook will decide for me after some creepy search retaliates against me for siding with Sarah and for this review. A second is all it takes for me to go bye bye for some infringement or for breaking some policy I’ll never get an answer for. God help us all.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2025
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Verified Purchase
Stephan Makatita
Phoenix, US
★★★★★ 4
Careless People: Power, Marketing, and the (Absent) Moral Boundaries at Facebook
Format: Hardcover
Careless People: Power, Marketing, and the (Absent) Moral Boundaries at Facebook Sarah Wynne-Williams, former Director of Public Policy at Facebook, spent seven years at the company. In Careless People, she takes the reader behind the scenes of the world’s largest social media platform. A hopeful mission She shows how Facebook’s original idealistic mission, “to make the world more open and connected”, was quickly overshadowed by internal tensions, political interests, and ethical dilemmas. Wynne-Williams began her career in the public sector. Driven by a strong sense of civic duty, she was initially enthusiastic about Facebook’s mission, but soon grew disillusioned with how things worked behind closed doors. In her book, she describes how commercial interests and the drive for rapid growth consistently outweighed (positive) social impact. This fundamental tension runs throughout the book. Diplomacy, data, and dominance The book offers a rare, and at times revealing, glimpse into Facebook’s international strategy. Wynne-Williams describes how the company organized state visits, attempted to build diplomatic relationships, and how many of these efforts ended in awkward failure. Particularly notable is Facebook’s push to enter the Chinese market, including Mark Zuckerberg’s personal effort to learn Mandarin. Facebook’s leadership: no innocent bystanders Wynne-Williams doesn’t spare the company’s executive leadership. She paints a picture of a culture riddled with sexual misconduct, power plays, and rivalries. The workplace environment she describes, full of intrigue, temper outbursts, and a striking lack of psychological safety, stands in stark contrast to Facebook’s carefully cultivated public image. This insight is valuable not only for those following Facebook, but for anyone seeking to understand how power and growth shape company culture in the tech sector. Facebook as a PR machine One of the book’s core revelations is how Facebook began to operate less as a technology company and more as a PR machine. Initiatives like internet.org were presented as altruistic, but in practice were primarily aimed at market expansion. The company’s role in political campaigns, notably Donald Trump’s election, is sharply laid out. The book illustrates how thin the line is between innovation and manipulation when user data is leveraged at scale for political and commercial gain. Insightful, but not always credible Wynne-Williams’ personal tone makes the book engaging and accessible. Her commitment to the mission, and her growing frustration, are palpable. Yet her constant presence as narrator sometimes undermines the story’s credibility. Dramatic anecdotes, coincidental twists, and strong personal judgments occasionally create distance, especially when the subject matter demands nuance. That’s unfortunate, because the topics she raises, ethics, global power dynamics, and the impact on young users, deserve to speak for themselves. Lessons for the future What stays with the reader is how even the most powerful tech companies appear vulnerable when ideals clash with growth ambitions. The book shows how easily ethical boundaries blur when billions are at stake. For companies, policymakers, and marketers, it offers a confronting mirror: rapid growth and profit never come without moral cost. Final verdict Careless People is an accessible and insightful book that offers a unique perspective on the inner workings of Facebook and Big Tech. Despite stylistic shortcomings, a tendency toward dramatization, and a sometimes overly subjective voice, it’s a worthwhile read for anyone looking to understand the intersection of technology, power, and marketing. Personally, I found it especially compelling because I’ve taken the opposite path: from marketing and tech into public service. That gives me a unique appreciation of the tension Wynne-Williams describes, the ongoing conflict between social ideals and commercial imperatives. The book lacks objectivity at times, but it undeniably prompts reflection. And that alone makes it more than worth the read. Rating: 7.5
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Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2025
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Verified Purchase
Todd
Waukegan, US
★★★★★ 5
How Facebook lost its conscience, and how the young man at its helm grew to love the taste of power
Format: Hardcover
A WORD ABOUT THIS PLATFORM THAT CONNECTS US Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams This riveting memoir about the maturation of Facebook is fascinating in large part because of the direct access the author had for over six years to the highest levels of leadership at the company. Its title comes from The Great Gatsby, where narrator Nick Carraway says, “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy — they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money.” A former New Zealand diplomat, Wynn-Williams had to pitch her own job to Facebook in 2011, as Zuckerberg and other senior leaders had no clue then about the role Facebook was destined to play in global politics. Rising to the position of Director of Global Public Policy, Wynn-Williams had a front-row seat to decisions that would irrevocably alter the political landscape in the US and around the world. Fast forward to the 2016 presidential election and the author’s account of how Facebook’s microtargeting of users, its allowance of misinformation on the site, and its assignment of staff to work hand in glove with the Trump campaign as they utilized these ethically compromised tactics turned the tide in that election, and set the stage for the wrecking ball now swinging in our halls of government. You could say Careless People is the story of how Facebook lost its conscience, and how the curious and impressionable young man at its helm grew to love the taste of power. The author weaves the story of Facebook’s role in the 2016 election with a number of other narratives, all revealing the same pattern showing how principled concerns were steamrolled by the relentless pursuit of growth, revenue, and influence. See also Cory Doctorow’s engaging review of this book, with its helpful explanation of why continued growth is so important to a company like Facebook. Her account reads like a slow-building tragedy, where you see exactly where the off-ramps were and watch, helplessly, as they pass by one by one: The Rohingya Genocide This is perhaps the most devastating section of the book. Wynn-Williams argues that Facebook failed to moderate hate speech against the Rohingya in Myanmar, and that the company only had two Burmese language moderators for the entire country. Facebook had also failed to invest in Burmese language support for its automated systems, meaning none of its moderation tools could even parse posts written in Burmese script. Because of these decisions, hate speech and misinformation designed to stoke ethnic and religious division spread like wildfire across the platform, and the genocide that followed is presented as a direct consequence of this reckless neglect. Censorship for China A chilling revelation for anyone who believes in free speech is Facebook’s willingness to compromise its own foundational values in pursuit of access to the Chinese market, which Zuckerberg seems to have perceived as a kind of final frontier and holy grail. Rather than standing firm on the principles of open communication it so publicly champions, Facebook secretly developed what was essentially a bespoke censorship tool designed to win over a Chinese government playing hard to get. If China had decided to allow Facebook through the Great Firewall, this system would have allowed Beijing to suppress content it found politically inconvenient, and would have extended into Hong Kong. One subnarrative in this thread is the lengths to which Zuckerberg went to court President Xi Jinping. He asks him (in Mandarin) to name his firstborn child (Xi declines), and the author includes an entertaining depiction of one-upmanship of Xi over Zuckerberg when the latter seeks unsuccessfully to arrange an impromptu meeting with Xi (since Xi had repeatedly rejected overt requests to meet). Sexual Harassment Culture For a company that spent years wrapping itself in the language of feminine empowerment and progressive values — most visibly through COO Sheryl Sandberg’s “Lean In” movement — the picture Wynn-Williams paints inside Facebook’s walls is a study in hypocrisy. The book alleges that sexual harassment by senior executives was not only tolerated but effectively shielded from consequences. Monetizing Teenage Insecurity Wynn-Williams reveals that Facebook identified teenage girls who had deleted selfies on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, and then forwarded their data to companies who used it to target them with beauty products. Let that sink in for a moment. These were young girls navigating the minefield of adolescent insecurity, who made a conscious decision to take their photos down. And rather than respecting that decision, Facebook treated it as a data point to be monetized. Content Moderation as a Political Tool At the heart of this memoir is the question of how Facebook decides what speech is acceptable and what isn’t, both in the US and across the world. Facebook has spent years presenting its content moderation decisions as principled, values-driven calls — the careful work of a responsible company trying to balance free expression with public safety. However, the author shows, an internal policy established in February 2015 made the actual workings explicit: when governments requested that content be removed, Facebook would only comply if there was a credible threat to block the platform entirely in that particular country or a risk to its own employees. Numerous examples paint a picture of a company that was essentially making it up as it went along — complying with take-down requests when powerful enough governments (such as China) pushed hard enough, and ignoring everyone else.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Most of us have encountered, in one way or another, Facebook’s self-described “Community Standards,” which, the company states, “are written to ensure that everyone’s voice is valued.” “Facebook,” the language continues, “takes great care to craft policies that are inclusive of different views and beliefs- in particular those of people and communities that might otherwise be overlooked or marginalized.” However, the picture the author reveals in Careless People suggests that such language is mostly posturing. Zuckerberg’s Ego and Detachment One of the most fascinating and unsettling threads running through the book is the portrait Wynn-Williams paints of Mark Zuckerberg — a man who began as a socially awkward but genuinely curious young idealist and somewhere along the way became something different. One anecdote about Indonesia is comic in its brazenness: Zuckerberg allegedly demanded that Wynn-Williams organize an entirely staged, artificial mob of fans to “gently” swarm him in public, creating the illusion of organic, spontaneous popularity. His staff routinely let him win at board games on his private jet, and he remains oblivious to that fact until the author finally spells it out one day. After the 2016 election, when Obama dresses him down at the APEC summit in Peru about Facebook’s role in swinging the results, he becomes indignant, and instead of recognizing an opportunity for a course correction, he contemplates a run for president himself, instructing his staff to take him on a grassroots tour of the country that includes all the requisite stops for a presidential candidate. Throughout the book, we see a leader increasingly insulated from the consequences of his own decisions, surrounded by people too afraid or too incentivized to speak the truth to his face. What makes the author’s account of this man and his company compelling is that initially she believed in the mission. She was there because she thought Facebook could be a genuine force for good in the world–a way to connect people, a uniquely powerful democratizing force. In that sense she probably stands in for most of us who are here right now because we recognized these same qualities ten or fifteen years ago. But now we feel tremors beneath us and the ground shifting in unsettling ways as we post and scroll and message here. What is this platform becoming? What are our responsibilities to bear witness to that and to respond? I believe this book can help us answer those difficult questions. As a footnote, consider that when the book was published, Meta immediately filed an emergency legal action to prevent Wynn-Williams from publicly promoting it, citing a non-disparagement agreement she signed on leaving the company. The attempt backfired in the way these things tend to: the book reached number one on the New York Times best-seller list, and Wynn-Williams was invited to testify before the U.S. Senate. Meta’s attempts to disparage the author read as transparent and cynical in the face of the credibility she establishes throughout this book. And its efforts to limit her voice have only become additional evidence supporting the story she has told. If you’re looking for a book that explains how we got to the crazy, upside-down world we are living in now — politically, socially, technologically — Careless People is a great place to start.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2026
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Verified Purchase
Onyx Parrot
Alexandria, US
★★★★★ 5
Great inside view of Facebook's corrupt behavior.
Format: Hardcover
I've always been creeped out by Facebook, and avoid all of their services. This book confirms the wisdom of this. The author is tough (literally surviving a shark attack as a teenager!) and smart. After getting a law degree in her native New Zealand, she climbs the ladder in a diplomacy career, working in New York and Washington DC. In the late 2000's she (idealistically) sees potential in Facebook as a global communications tool, and after aggressively pursuing a position there manages to land a job at Facebook's Washington DC office helping to manage their international affairs. Her work at Facebook starts off chaotic but hopeful. Her experience with international affairs as the company wakes up to their global opportunities lands her in the company's C-suites, escorting and introducing executives to world leaders as they expand their global influence. Things start to go off the rails when Facebook's leaders observe their large (and profitable!) political influence with the rise of Donald Trump. Observing this facility to use Facebook for promoting other leaders around the world (many corrupt), the original idealism goes out the window as Facebook cashes in on becoming a global propaganda and manipulation tool. Wynn-Williams had a front row seat to all of this, as well as some really ugly workplace behavior, left unchecked. She's a great storyteller. The book is well worth reading if you're curious about how the company (now "Meta") regards the world's attention it harvests for maximum profit. My only disappointment with the book is the Cambridge Analytica scandal is only mentioned in passing, even though it occurred during the author's tenure at the company. I'd be interested in her observations on it, even if she wasn't directly involved.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2026

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