We’ve seen how non-dilutive, revenue-based financing has risen up the priority ranks for companies as the era of ZIRP — as the Zero Interest Rate Period is now lovingly and somewhat longingly known — recedes into the distance, and securing venture capital funds becomes harder. An example of this is how US companies in this veign are oft raising capital, such as Lighter Capital, with its new $130M … [Read more...]

Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer says Microsoft is talking to partners about launching an Xbox mobile store, as first reported by Bloomberg. Spencer made the comment during an interview at the CCXP comics and entertainment convention in Brazil on Thursday. The mobile store would take on Apple and Google, and could launch sooner than later, as Spencer noted that he doesn’t believe the launch is … [Read more...]

It was kind of a strange AWS re:Invent this week in Las Vegas. Once again, there wasn’t a huge amount of news coming out of the massive customer event; the biggest announcements were related to AI, of course. But the real story could be that Amazon has found itself in the uncomfortable position of chasing Microsoft when it comes to AI. And that’s in spite of the drama that played out at OpenAI … [Read more...]

A Paris-based startup called Capsule wants to transform the way users seek out their daily news. Instead of offering a standard news aggregator experience, Capsule’s mission is to become the “Spotify for news” by combining AI technology and human editorial curation to provide a news reading experience that transforms news articles, newsletter snippets, and even tweets (posts on X) and other social … [Read more...]

Book blurbs have become a central part of the publishing industry: Who better to endorse a book than other authors and thought leaders? In that same spirit, we asked several writers to recommend books that you and other TechCrunch readers may want to gift this holiday season. Read on for recommendations from: The responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity. This article contains … [Read more...]

Standing on the rear bed of his greatest boondoggle, his face obscured in shadow, the billionaire who built a rabid fanbase through seemingly inhuman feats of engineering and willpower cut a greatly reduced figure: Elon Musk was presiding over the first customer deliveries of a Tesla truck that, like most things Musk touched, was drastically over budget and far beyond its original shipping … [Read more...]

Justin Kaufenberg Contributor In my last SaaS+ series article, I covered the six core architectural concepts you need to think about when building a SaaS+ company. There are a number of benefits that come from putting the right building blocks in place from the start and creating a strong core platform. One major benefit is the option of hosting a search and discovery … [Read more...]

A ban on TikTok’s app in the state of Montana, enacted earlier this year, is now on hold. On Thursday, a U.S. federal judge in the state temporarily blocked the ban from going live, claiming it was unconstitutional and an overstep of state power. Specifically, the court ruled that the ban likely violated the First Amendment as well as a clause that gives Congress the power to regulate commerce … [Read more...]

Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts. Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines. This is our Friday show, and we’re talking about the week’s biggest startup and tech news. This week Mary Ann, Kirsten Korosec, and Alex Wilhelm were on hand to chew through a veritable mountain of news. … [Read more...]

Meta has received another formal request for information (RFI) from European Union regulators seeking more details of its response to child safety concerns on Instagram — including what it’s doing to tackle risks related to the sharing of self-generated child sexual abuse material (SG-CSAM) on the social network. The request is being made under the bloc’s recently rebooted online rulebook the … [Read more...]

Apple has released security updates for iPhones, iPads and Macs to patch against two vulnerabilities, which the company says are being actively exploited to hack people. The technology giant rolled out new software updates, iOS and iPadOS 17.1.2, and macOS 14.1.2, following a vulnerability disclosure by security researchers at Google’s Threat Analysis Group, which investigates government-backed … [Read more...]

This list includes educational gifts, apps that spark creativity and more things to go beyond the usual tech gift for children. Aisha Malik 9 hours When it comes to gifts, it can be hard to pick the right one for your kids, especially since there are so many toys to choose from. If you’re looking for something lesser-known and innovative, you may want … [Read more...]

Telegram announced new features related to channels including better discovery of similar channels, emoji customization for reactions, and stats for stories to compete better with WhatsApp. The Meta-owned platform rolled out its broadcast channels feature globally in September. When a user joins a new Telegram channel, the app will now suggest similar channels they can join to better surface … [Read more...]

Yesterday in Helsinki, this editor interviewed four of the six general partners at Benchmark, the nearly 30-year-old, Silicon Valley firm that’s known for some notable bets (Uber, Dropbox), paying each general partner exactly the same way, and for continuing to raise similar-size funds over its many years rather than balloon in size.  We were speaking at Slush, a major event for the European … [Read more...]

Smartphone sales will mount a comeback starting in 2024, defying growing warnings of a prolonged slump across the mobile sector, according to separate projections by Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley reviewed by TechCrunch. Morgan Stanley’s report predicts global smartphone shipments will rebound by nearly 4% in 2024 and by 4.4% in 2025, shrugging off comparisons to the PC industry’s multi-year … [Read more...]

Leading defense tech startup Anduril has developed a new product designed to take-on the proliferation of low-cost, high-powered aerial threats. The product is called Roadrunner, a modular, twin-jet powered autonomous vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) air vehicle that’s designed for low costs. Anduril has also developed a variant called Roadrunner-Munition, or Roadrunner-M, a “high-explosive … [Read more...]

After keeping some key specs close to its proverbial chest, Tesla is finally sharing more details about the final production versions of the Cybertruck electric pickup. Tesla published battery, speed and other stats during its delivery event on Thursday, during which the automaker went out of the way to compare the Cybertruck to some of its competitors, including Ford’s F-150 Lightning and … [Read more...]

Defense startup Epirus is getting new leadership. Staff were told at an all-hands meeting this morning that CEO Ken Bedingfield was leaving, TechCrunch learned. The news was later confirmed by a company spokesperson, who told TechCrunch that Bedingfield accepted a role at an unnamed public company. He will be replaced by COO Andy Lowery, effective immediately. Bedingfield held the title of CEO at … [Read more...]

Bad news: If you had your heart set on a sub-$40,000 Cybertruck, it ain’t coming next year, if ever. Though Tesla plans to ramp up production of its electric pickup in 2024, the company clarified today after its splashy delivery event that the cheapest Cybertruck variant will be available in 2025. Tesla first announced a single-motor Cybertruck variant with rear-wheel drive back in 2019, promising … [Read more...]

With dubstep as the soundtrack and neon lighting as the backdrop, Elon Musk handed the first Cybertrucks over to a select group of customers that included Reddit co-founder and VC fund Seven Seven Six founder Alexis Ohanian and Trousdale Ventures founder and CEO Phillip Sarofim. The live streamed portion of the Tesla Cybertruck delivery event was a short affair — around 30 minutes. But the event … [Read more...]