Category: Enterprise
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SoftBank acquires UK AI chipmaker Graphcore
While the figure of $500 million has been bandied around in various reports for months, in a press briefing early Thursday morning, Graphcore co-founder and CEO Nigel Toon remained coy on the details. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. U.K. chip company Graphcore has been formally acquired by Japan’s SoftBank.…
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Reliance may list Jio at $112 billion valuation next year, Jefferies says
Reliance Industries, India’s most valuable company, may consider spinning off its telecom arm Jio for a public listing as early as 2025, Jefferies said in a research note, with investors favouring this route over an initial public offering. The move follows Jio’s recent focus on monetisation and market share gains, signaled by its leading role…
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Adfin wants to fix bill payments for sole traders and small companies
Meet Adfin, a new UK-based fintech startup that wants to help companies get their invoices paid — whatever it takes. Founded by two fintech experts, the company is starting with a problem and building a product around it. The problem is that it’s still hard to get paid if you’re set up as a sole…
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Uzbekistan mobile bank TBC raises $38.2M to expand its financial products
Uzbekistan’s mobile-only bank TBC Bank Uzbekistan has raised $38.2 million in a fresh funding by its existing shareholders. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. Uzbekistan’s only mobile-exclusive bank, TBC Bank Uzbekistan, owned by London Stock Exchange-listed TBC Bank Group, has raised $38.2 million in a fresh equity investment. It plans…
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Sekai secures Naruto’s license to develop consumer apps for anime fans
Just like in your favorite anime, this is the story of a young group of twentysomethings who started with nothing, traveled the world and ended up with a global license to develop official Naruto consumer apps. Founded in early 2022, French startup Sekai describes itself as a studio that wants to create entertainment experiences with…
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Joby Aviation is betting on hydrogen-electric aircraft for regional flight
Joby Aviation is still a year away from commercially launching its electric air taxi designed for urban environments, but the startup is already looking towards its next chapter: Intercity flight, powered by hydrogen. To get the conversation started with regulators and demonstrate hydrogen’s capabilities, Joby told TechCrunch that it completed a 523-mile test flight with…
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EU ends Apple Pay antitrust probe with binding commitments to open up contactless payments
The European Union has accepted commitments from Apple over how it operates Apple Pay to settle a long running competition investigation. Commission EVP Margrethe Vestager, who heads up the EU’s competition division, announced the development in a press conference Thursday. Apple has until July 25 to implement changes that will allow developers of rival mobile…
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AI-powered Regard nabs $61M to find missed illness, boost hospital revenue
People in tech often say that data is the new oil. That phrase, coined by British mathematician Clive Humby, of course implies that data is valuable. Data about a person’s health can also provide meaningful insights and improve outcomes, but only 3% of patient data is currently used by physicians, according to the World Economic…
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Intel Capital backs AI construction startup that could boost Intel’s own manufacturing prospects
Intel could be giving its burgeoning foundry ambitions a much-needed shot in the arm, as the chip giant’s venture capital arm today revealed that it’s making a “strategic” investment in an Israel- and U.K.-based AI construction startup. Intel Capital is leading a $15 million investment into Buildots, a company that uses AI and computer vision…
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Alpine Space Ventures close first fund to grow the space economy on both sides of the pond
When early SpaceX engineer Bulent Altan and long-time investor Joran Voelklein surveyed the European space sector at the end of the 2010s, they were surprised: it looked a whole lot like the beginnings of American NewSpace in the early 2000s, when SpaceX and other companies were just setting up shop. The pair decided to go…