Also: Why edtech is a historically weak investment compared to other sectors Alex Wilhelm 9 hours Good morning! I am writing to you in the minutes before I have to pack up my writing and podcasting setups so that I can catch a few planes to San Francisco for Early Stage. (I’m moderating two sessions,
TikTok announced today that it has started testing a way for users to identify comments that they think are irrelevant or inappropriate. Following the announcement, the company confirmed to TechCrunch that users who are part of the test will be able to flag these sorts of comments via a private dislike button. The new feature
The medium is the message more than ever these days, and brands are faced with a challenge — but also opportunity — to capture what consumers think about them and their products if they can harness and better understand those messages, via whichever medium is being used to deliver them. Today, a company called BlueOcean
When the European Commission presented its Digital Services Act (DSA) proposal in December 2020, it listed beefed up consumer protections as a headline goal for the flagship update to the bloc’s rules for digital services. But now, as negotiations over the draft law are in the final stretch, where EU co-legislators hash out the detail
Last year, reports began circulating that Google was developing a “Switch to Android” app for iOS users looking to make the jump from iPhone to a smartphone running Google’s Android OS. Now that app has arrived. On Monday, Google quietly launched the Switch to Android app on the App Store in a number of global
There’s no shortage of digital banks in Nigeria and, in general, in Africa. As the region continues to experience rapid growth in mobile usage and the corresponding growing young population, these fintechs think this is the right time to provide financial services to every market category, from the banked to the unbanked. We’ve covered a
Global, local factors paint contrasted picture for LatAm startups in H1 2022 Anna Heim 7 hours That global venture capital slowed down in Q1 2022 might no longer be news to you. But global numbers can hide diverging realities around the world, and a closer look at regional data shows us that it is indeed
Snapchat is introducing a new “Dynamic Stories” feature that will allow publishers to automatically create Stories on the app based on news stories they publish online, the company announced on Tuesday. Early partners include CNN, Bloomberg, ESPN and more. The new feature uses a publisher’s RSS Feed to automatically create and post Stories on a
Today during its second Work Transformation Summit this week, Zoom announced Zoom IQ for Sales, a product that uses AI to analyze sales meetings and deals to provide insights. It’s the company’s first explicit foray into sales automation software, a market that — according to Verified Market Research — could grow to $7.3 billion in
With Facebook, Twitter and Instagram banned by the Kremlin, TikTok is the last global social media platform still operating in Russia. In response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it announced it had banned new uploads on March 6 to protect users from Russian “fake news” law. But a new report has found that the
Nursing shortages were a problem well before our hospitals were rocked by a pandemic. Two years in and overloaded systems have further contributed to burnout, stress and other factors plaguing the people we rely on for our own well-being. We’ve seen robotics applied to just about every other field of late, so why not nursing
Back in March 2021, online payment processing giant Stripe announced that it had raised $600 million at a $95 billion valuation. The numbers made a splash when they were made public months after the deal leaked. That Stripe raised in early 2021 is notable. Some private companies that raised large sums of capital last year have
TikTok issued an update Tuesday on its efforts to stem the flow of misinformation about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but the company doesn’t appear to be effectively implementing its existing policies around the war. The social network cut off new content originating in Russia in early March in response to a harsh new law in
Data — it’s the lifeblood of every company, and as our data culture transforms, so too must your business. An emerging, innovative data ecosystem promises to integrate disparate data sources, provide a more complete picture of business, both present and future, and improve enterprise collaboration at every level. Understanding the rapidly changing trends in data
The European Commission continues to eschew pronouncing a firm timeline for finalizing a new EU-U.S. data transfers deal after the two sides reached a political agreement on a way forward last month. But today justice commissioner, Didier Reynders, put out a slightly strengthened suggestion that a replacement for the defunct Privacy Shield could be adopted
As an earlier report had suggested, Spotify today announced it will integrate the live audio capabilities from its companion app, Spotify Greenroom, within the main Spotify streaming app. Greenroom will also rebrand as “Spotify Live” as part of these changes. At launch, Spotify’s main app will only feature live content from select original programming, while
Grain, a four-year-old, fully remote startup that’s finding increasingly elaborate ways to capture video snippets of online meetings to make important moments easy to share, search, and save, has raised $16 million in Series A funding led by Tiger Global Management. Other backers in the round include Zoom itself, the Slack Fund, Unusual Ventures, and
Deel, Firstbase show that supporting remote workers is big business Alex Wilhelm 7 hours If you rewind the clock to February of this year, Deel, a startup that helps customers hire in other countries, announced that it had built the ability to pay workers in crypto. Regardless of your view on the financial intelligence of
Clubhouse is testing a new in-room gaming feature on both iOS and Android devices, the company confirmed to TechCrunch on Tuesday. As part of the initial launch, the app is rolling out a game called “Wild Cards,” which presents a series of questions that are designed to spur conversation and help people get to know
TC Sessions: Mobility is back, and this year we are bringing together the best and brightest founders, investors, engineers and experts on the future of transportation for a two-day, in-person event May 18 and May 19 in San Mateo, California. An online day will follow on May 20 to give our audience, including those who
Union.ai, a startup emerging from stealth with a commercial version of the open source AI orchestration platform Flyte, today announced that it raised $10 million in a round contributed by NEA and “select” angel investors. CEO Ketan Umare says that the proceeds will be put toward supporting the Flyte community by “improving the accessibility, performance
Apple CEO Tim Cook has used a speech at the IAPP conference in Washington, D.C. today to frame looming competition reforms which could force the iPhone maker to allow sideloading of apps as a threat to privacy and security. His remarks avoided mentioning any specific pieces of legislation but moves are afoot on both sides
Apple is releasing an iMovie update today for iOS and iPadOS. iMovie 3.0 introduces two new major features — storyboards and Magic Movie. It is available as a free download on the App Store for anyone running at least iOS 15.2 or iPadOS 15.2. With the previous version of iMovie, most people started with a blank
PassiveLogic, a startup developing a platform to autonomously control building systems, today announced that it raised $15 million from Brookfield Growth, the investment arm of asset management firm Brookfield. CEO Troy Harvey says that the new capital will be put toward growing PassiveLogic’s team and “launching an ecosystem of products that enable autonomy.” Analysts at
Processing claims at scale presents a challenge for insurers, particularly where the claims entail factors like complex underlying health conditions. According to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the second-most common complaint that insurance customers made in 2021 was claim delays, ranked second after unsatisfactory settlement offers. The pandemic placed an additional strain
Meesho has let go over 150 employees and is looking to eliminate at least as many more positions as the Indian social commerce attempts to streamline its operations following an ongoing struggle to put together a new funding round at favorable terms, sources familiar with the matter said. Meesho, last valued at $4.9 billion in
The global pandemic shifted many home service employees from W2 to 1099 status, which is giving Jobox.ai a lot more business. The Florida and Bay Area-based company is going after the $595 billion home services industry, where skilled labor is facing a shortage, by connecting companies with over 5,000 vetted home service professionals via a
With individuals and teams transitioning to a fully remote or hybrid model working models, post-pandemic, there’s a theory that employees still desire the structure and accountability that working in an office used to provide. Not everyone likes working remotely full time, right? There’s a lack of ‘community’. Plus, sometimes it’s hard to get into state
Showing that the product analytics industry is alive and well, Kubit today announced that it raised $18 million in a series A funding round led by Insight Partners, bringing its total capital raised to $24 million. Kubit says that it’ll put the fresh cash toward growing its team and expanding its platform, which helps customers
Voyager Innovations, the owner of Philippines’ payment and financial services app PayMaya and neobank Maya Bank, announced today it has raised $210 million, bringing its valuation to $1.4 billion. The round was led by SIG Venture Capital, and included participation from EDBI and First Pacific Company, as well as returning shareholders PLDT, KKR, Tencent, International