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Category: Exclusive

electric vehicles, EVs, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Tesla, Transportation

Tesla to split $100M award for electric truck charging corridor in Illinois

Tesla, along with three other industry partners, quietly backed an Illinois Environmental Protection Agency application that won $100 million in funding to build electric truck charging stations across the state, TechCrunch has learned. The award was the biggest given out by the Biden Administration’s Federal Highway Administration last week in the second round of what’s…

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Apps, Bluesky, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, iOS apps, photo sharing, Social, social media, Social networks

Bluesky is getting its own photo-sharing app, Flashes

More good news for those looking to exit Meta’s social app ecosystem in favor of a more open alternative: An independent developer is building a photo-sharing app for Bluesky called Flashes. The soon-to-launch app is powered by the same technology that underpins Bluesky, the AT Protocol, and has been built using code from the developer’s…

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Europe, Exclusive, Fintech, Fundraising, Global Security News, medical practice, Nelly, SaaS, Startups

Nelly raises $51 million to digitalize medical practices across Europe

Nelly wants to become the biggest fintech startup in the healthcare industry. The Berlin-based startup is already working with more than 1,200 medical practices in a handful of European countries. But there are thousands more that could benefit from an upgrade for their administrative workflows. That’s why Nelly recently raised €50 million in funding (around…

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electric vehicles, EVs, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Harbinger, Transportation

EV startup Harbinger’s obsession with simplicity fuels $100M Series B

It’s not an easy time to raise money for an electric vehicle startup, especially given how many have failed or are close to failing. But Los Angeles-based Harbinger has pulled it off by taking an hyper-focused approach to electrifying commercial trucking.  The reward is a $100 million Series B, co-led by early Tesla investor Capricorn…

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Barcelona, Cybersecurity, Defense Prime, Epsilon, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Hackers, Head and Tail, Palm Beach Networks, Security, Spyware, Startups, variston, zero days

How Barcelona became an unlikely hub for spyware startups

Barcelona’s mix of affordable cost of living and quality of life has helped create a vibrant startup community — and become a hotbed for the creation of surveillance technologies. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

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a16z, AI, design, Exclusive, Fashion, Global IT News, Global Security News, greycroft, Startups

Raspberry AI raises $24M from a16z to accelerate fashion design

The world of fashion is moving at a faster pace each year. Most retailers introduce new styles each season, and fast-fashion companies like Shein, H&M and Zara update their collections continuously.  To keep pace with the rapid demand for new styles, brands and manufacturers have been turning to tech to accelerate their design process. Raspberry…

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electric trucks, electric vehicles, EVs, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Tesla, Transportation

Biden admin snubs Tesla’s $100 million big-rig charging funding request — again

The Department of Transportation announced Friday another $636 million in funding that will be awarded to 49 applicants for electric vehicle charging infrastructure — and Tesla’s application for nearly $100 million to fund a big rig charging corridor was once again passed over. Tesla’s name was not among the list of recipients released, and its partner…

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bench, Employer.com, Exclusive, Fintech, Global IT News, Global Security News, Startups

Bench customers are now being forced to hand over their data or risk losing it, they say

After accounting startup Bench abruptly shut down on December 27 and was bought in a fire-sale by Employer.com, Bench customers are now learning they can’t easily just take their financial data and leave.  And some are very unhappy about it, three customers told TechCrunch. To recap: When Bench, a startup based in Canada that raised…

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AI, Apps, Automation, Enterprise, Exclusive, Funding, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, gumloop, startup, Startups, workflow, workflow automation

Gumloop, founded in a bedroom in Vancouver, lets users automate tasks with drag-and-drop modules

Developers Max Brodeur-Urbas and Rahul Behal think that AI has the potential to automate lots of business-relevant tasks, but that many of the AI-powered automation tools on the market today are unreliable and costly. Part of the problem is that users expect too much of AI, Brodeur-Urbas told TechCrunch — for instance, they assume that…

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biomanufacturing, biosphere, Biotech & Health, biotechnology, Climate, electrification, Exclusive, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, Lowercarbon Capital, VXI Capital

Biosphere zaps germs with UV light to make biomanufacturing cheaper

Using LEDs has the potential to bring down the cost of biomanufacturing, allowing such processes to make materials that previously would have been too expensive.  © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

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AI, ces 2025, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Hardware, nvidia

Nvidia CEO says his AI chips are improving faster than Moore’s Law

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says the performance of his company’s AI chips is advancing faster than historical rates set by Moore’s Law, the rubric that drove computing progress for decades. “Our systems are progressing way faster than Moore’s Law,” said Huang in an interview with TechCrunch on Tuesday, the morning after he delivered a keynote…

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accounting, AI, bain capital ventures, bench, Exclusive, Fintech, Global IT News, Global Security News, Shopify, Startups

Inside the wild fall and last-minute revival of Bench, the VC-backed accounting startup that imploded over the holidays

Friday, December 27, was supposed to be the start of a relaxing holiday weekend. But it was chaos for thousands of small business owners who use Bench, an accounting and tax startup based in Canada that raised $113 million from investors like Bain Capital Ventures and Shopify. That morning, they found themselves unable to log…

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AI, Exclusive, Funding, Fundraising, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, pitchbook, Startups, trends, VC, Venture

Generative AI funding reached new heights in 2024

If there was any doubt, the generative AI bubble didn’t burst in 2024. Investments in generative AI, which encompasses a range of AI-powered apps, tools, and services to generate text, images, videos, speech, music, and more, reached new heights last year. According to data from financial tracker PitchBook compiled for TechCrunch, generative AI companies worldwide…

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Climate, electra, Exclusive, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, scoop, steel

Electra found a cheap, clean way to purify iron, and it’s raising $257M to make it happen

Electra has raised $76.3 million to clean up the dirty ironmaking industry, TechCrunch has learned. The startup has developed a novel method of using electricity to coax pure iron out of low-grade ores, opening the door to cleaner steel. The new funding round, which was disclosed in a regulatory filing, seeks to raise a total…

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AI, AI training, content creators, copyright, Exclusive, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, ip, Media & Entertainment, media manager, openai, opt-out

OpenAI failed to deliver the opt-out tool it promised by 2025

Back in May, OpenAI said it was developing a tool to let creators specify how they want their works to be included in — or excluded from — its AI training data. But 7 months later, this feature has yet to see the light of day. Called Media Manager, the tool would “identify copyrighted text,…

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bench, Employer.com, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, hr, HR tech, Startups

Bench to be acquired after abruptly shutting down

Bench, the VC-backed accounting startup that left thousands of customers locked out of their accounts after it suddenly shut down last week, will be acquired by Employer.com for an undisclosed price in a last-minute deal, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. The San Francisco-based HR tech company Employer.com focuses on payroll and onboarding, in contrast to Bench,…

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calo, Exclusive, food delivery, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, meal delivery, Startups

Calo raises $25 million to expand its ready-to-eat meal service beyond the Middle East

A business built around increasingly customized ready-to-eat meals has netted Middle Eastern startup Calo a sizeable funding injection as it looks to expand both what it can offer its time-strapped customers and where it delivers its growing range of just-heat-to-eat dishes. The meal delivery market in the Middle East will hit $11.2 billion by 2030,…

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Apps, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, Social

Instagram tests a way to show you Story Highlights you didn’t get a chance to see

Instagram is testing a way for you to see content from friends that you might have missed. The social network has started displaying unseen Story Highlights from a user’s mutual followers at the end of the Stories tray, which is the area at the top of your feed where you see Stories from your friends.…

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Canoo, electric vehicles, EVs, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Transportation

EV startup Canoo places remaining employees on a ‘mandatory unpaid break’

Struggling electric van startup Canoo has placed its remaining employees on what it’s calling a “mandatory unpaid break” through at least the end of the year, according to an email obtained by TechCrunch. The company told employees they are being locked out of Canoo’s systems at the end of the day Friday, according to the…

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Exclusive, femtech, Global IT News, Global Security News, SEC, Swizzle Fund, Venture, Women's Finance

Swizzle Fund raises $5M for inaugural fund addressing women’s health and wealth

There is a new venture fund in town. Swizzle Fund, founded by Jessica Kamada, former COO of the marketing agency Bamboo, has raised just a little more than $5 million for its Fund I, according to an SEC filing. There was no target raise amount.  The firm, which quietly opened in 2023, is an early-stage…

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EVs, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, lawsuit, Rivian, Transportation

Rivian executives accused of harassment in previously unreported lawsuits

Four employees have sued Rivian in separate lawsuits this year over allegations they were harassed, in some cases by top executives, and that the company’s leadership did little to address their concerns, according to a TechCrunch review of court records. Rivian has also reached settlements in three other harassment and discrimination cases, TechCrunch has learned. …

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AI, ai alignment, ai safety, Emmett Shear, Exclusive, Funding, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, scoop, startup, Startups

Ex-Twitch CEO Emmett Shear is founding an AI startup backed by a16z

Emmett Shear, the former CEO of Twitch, is launching a new AI startup, TechCrunch has learned. The startup, called Stem AI, is currently in stealth. But public documents show it was incorporated in June 2023, and filed for a trademark in August 2023. Shear is listed as CEO on an incorporation document filed with the…

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a16z, AI, AI coding tools, Anysphere, cursor, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Startups, Thrive Capital

In just 4 months AI coding assistant Cursor raised another $100M at a $2.5B valuation led by Thrive, sources say

Anysphere, the developer of AI-powered coding assistant Cursor, raised $100 million Series B at a post-money valuation of $2.6 billion, according to sources with knowledge of the deal. The round is being led by returning investor Thrive Capital, the person said.  This new funding comes just four months after Anysphere raised its $60 million Series…

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Crypto, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, meme coin, Neverless, Revolut, Startups

With Neverless, former Revolut execs want to make meme coins easy to buy

There’s an ocean of meme coins beyond Dogecoin, and a new startup called Neverless wants to make it easier to get started with trading crypto, with a particular focus on providing access to small-cap tokens. This is an interesting new crypto startup, founded by three former executives at Revolut, the London-based fintech juggernaut. Phuc To…

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AI, Exclusive, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, Gusto, Hauler Hero, SaaS, servicetitan, Startups, TC, waste management

Hauler Hero wants to bring waste management software into the 21st century

After nearly four years of working in sales at tradesperson software company ServiceTitan, Mark Hoadley (pictured above) was looking for a change and to potentially start something of his own in a similar industry. Hoadley’s brother-in-law, and now co-founder, Ben Sikma, was working on M&A in the waste management space at the time. Sikma discovered…

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Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Jay Z, Marcy Venture Partners, roc nation, Venture

Jay Z’s Marcy Venture Partners merges with investment arm of Pendulum Holdings

Jay Z’s venture capital firm, Marcy Venture Partners, has merged with another Black-owned investment firm, Pendulum Holding’s investment arm Pendulum Opportunities, to form MarcyPen Capital Partners, a MarcyPen spokesperson confirmed to TechCrunch. The newly formed MarcyPen Capital Partners has $900 million in assets under management, according to Pitchbook.  MarcyPen’s spokesperson declined to comment further on…

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Cybersecurity, Enterprise, enterprise startup, Exclusive, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, Prequel, startup, Startups, venture capital

Prequel is building a community-driven approach to finding software bugs

Cybersecurity practitioners take a community-driven approach to solving problems. Security researchers share the vulnerabilities they find with the broader cybersecurity community, which allows companies to patch up their security holes before something catastrophic happens. Prequel is looking to bring that same approach to software. The startup is building a database of software failure patterns or…

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Crypto, Exclusive, fbi, feuds, Founders Fund, Global IT News, Global Security News, Kalshi, Polymarket, presidential election, social media, Startups, Venture

Kalshi CEO admits enlisting influencers to dis Polymarket in a now-deleted podcast segment

Kalshi’s CEO, Tarek Mansour, confirmed on a podcast interview that his employees did ask social media influencers to promote memes about the FBI’s raid on the home of his arch rival, the CEO of Polymarket.  Both of these companies offer competing events-betting markets, a new kind of betting industry where people wager about the outcomes…

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