Category: Enterprise
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The top AI deals in Europe this year
Cumulatively, there have been more than 1,700 funding rounds for AI startups in Europe so far in 2024. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. Startups overall are still facing strong headwinds when it comes to raising venture capital funding. Q2 was only a modest improvement on the low points of…
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VCs are so eager for AI startups, they’re buying into each others’ SPVs at high prices
VCs are increasingly buying shares of late-stage startups on the secondary market as they try to get pieces of the hottest ones — especially AI companies. But they are also increasingly doing so through financial instruments called special purpose vehicles (SVPs). Some of those SPVs are becoming such hot commodities that they are commanding premium…
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X shareholders as of June 2023 included funds tied to Bill Ackman, Binance, and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
A court order recently forced Elon Musk’s X to reveal its full list of shareholders, as of June 2023, to the public. Many of the recognizable tech industry names had already been reported as backers of Musk’s effort to buy the social media company then known as Twitter and take it private, inculding VC firms…
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Google just made a $250M deal with California to support journalism — here’s what it means
This week, Google joined a $250 million deal with the state of California to support California newsrooms. While the deal offers a much-needed cash infusion for an industry that’s seen crippling layoffs this year, the deal’s been criticized by some as a half-measure — and a cop-out. By agreeing to this deal, Google averts bills…
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Do you know where your children are? Maybe on X
A surprising number of “iPad kids” — aka Generation Alpha’s 7- to 9-year-old demographic — are using X, according to new data from parental control software maker Qustodio. The firm found that over 30% of this group of children have an X account. Qustodio theorizes that X may be gaining the attention of this young…
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Starliner will return to Earth uncrewed, astronauts staying on ISS until February
Boeing’s Starliner mission is coming back to Earth — empty. After months of data analysis and internal deliberation, NASA leadership announced today that Starliner will be coming back to Earth in September, without a crew. Meanwhile, astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams will remain on-board the International Space Station until February 2025, when they will…
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The fallout after Bolt’s aggressive fundraising attempt has been wild
After fintech Bolt surprised the industry with a leaked term sheet that revealed it is trying to raise at a $14 billion valuation, things got weird. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. This past week was a wild one in the world of fintech as Bolt surprised the industry with…
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Canoo’s chief technology officer is out amid wider reorg
EV startup Canoo’s chief technology officer Sohel Merchant has left the company, two people familiar with his departure have told TechCrunch. Merchant was one of the members of Canoo’s founding team, who created the startup in late 2017. His departure from the company means that only one of those founding team members remains — chief…
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Marc Andreessen’s family plans to build a ‘visionary’ subdivision near the proposed California Forever utopia city
Marc Andreessen’s family is planning to build a large housing development near the proposed California Forever city. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. The family of powerhouse venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, one of the investors behind the hoped-for California Forever utopian city in Solano County, California, is planning a substantial community…
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M&A can open up the playing field for the competition
No two businesses are the same, and that’s good news: As we saw again this week, it opens up space for companies to try opposite approaches, join forces or challenge leaders. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. Welcome to Startups Weekly — your weekly recap of everything you can’t miss…