One year ago this week, Amazon.com Inc. loudly declared its intention to become a grocery industry heavyweight by announcing its agreement to buy Whole Foods Market.

A watchdog group is calling on Amazon.com Inc. to improve conditions for factory workers in China who make Echo speakers and Kindle e-readers, renewing criticisms that CEO Jeff Bezos became the world’s wealthiest man on the backs of low-paid laborers.

How big is the “gig economy”? Last week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics gave the first official reading of how many Americans rely on temporary work, freelancing, and on-demand apps to make ends meet. And the answer is: a lot.

And now, in the latest transition from science fiction to reality: the coming of “flying taxis.”

Once upon a time, a tiny creature was exposed to extraordinary forces, grew rapidly and exponentially until it became an enormous beast, smashing stores and office buildings and sending Tokyo into terror. Back in 1954, the beast was Godzilla. In 2018, we call it Amazon.