Spotify launches physical book sales, adds new audiobook features
Spotify users are facing yet another price hike, but book lovers can look forward to some exciting developments that may help soften the blow. Spotify on Thursday announced some updates about its audiobook business, specifically its expansion into physical books. Users in the US and UK will soon be able to purchase physical copies of […]
Sam Altman took a very harsh stance on Claude’s Super Bowl ad
Anthropic’s Super Bowl commercial, one of four ads dropped by AI Labs on Wednesday, begins with the word “BETRAYAL” boldly splashed across the screen. The camera shifts to a man eagerly seeking advice from a chatbot (obviously meant to portray ChatGPT) on how to talk to his mother. This bot, played by a blonde woman, […]
Revenue increases in Q4 as Snap prepares for general availability, but daily users decline
Snap is on a mission to diversify its revenue streams, moving from a business model that primarily follows advertising revenue to one that also makes money through subscriptions and eventually hardware. The company’s latest quarterly earnings report shows that the company has had some success with its strategy so far. Snap’s revenue for the fourth […]
Alphabet won’t tell investors about Google and Apple’s AI deal
Alphabet declined to answer a question about Google and Apple’s AI deals to one investor during its fourth-quarter earnings call on Wednesday. Instead of answering an analyst’s question about how the tech giant was thinking about AI partnerships, such as its partnership with Apple to power Siri’s AI, the question was completely ignored. But this […]
Police station set up in Elon Musk’s SpaceX town
Starbase, the corporate town founded by Elon Musk’s SpaceX in South Texas, has its own police squad. At a special meeting Tuesday, the City Commission approved an ordinance creating a city police department, subject to approval by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE). The department will be run by a police chief elected by […]
Introducing Gizmo: TikTok for interactive, vibe-coded mini-apps
Gizmo, a TikTok-like app for vibe-coded mini-applications, offers a new way to create interactive media. Startup Atma Sciences’ relatively new mobile app allows anyone to create experiences using text, photos, sound, and touch, which appear in a vertical feed similar to TikTok or Reels. But unlike traditional short-form video apps, Gizmo doesn’t just watch and […]
Tinder looks to AI to fight ‘swipe fatigue’ and dating app burnout
Tinder is eyeing a new AI-powered feature called Chemistry to help alleviate so-called “swipe fatigue,” a growing problem among online daters who are experiencing burnout and seeking better results. The Match-owned dating app, introduced last quarter, said Chemistry leverages AI to get to know you through questions and, with your permission, can access your phone’s […]
Lunar Energy raises $232 million to deploy home battery storage to support power grid
Forget about EVs. Stationary batteries have recently become a hot topic in the United States and are attracting investment. Startup Lunar Energy is the latest example. The six-year-old company, which makes battery packs for homeowners in California, Georgia and Washington, announced Wednesday that it has closed two large funding rounds. The startup shared that it […]
Hackers release personal information stolen during Harvard, University of Pennsylvania data breaches
A notorious hacker group has claimed responsibility for last year’s data breaches at Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), releasing data it claims was stolen from both schools. The group known as ShinyHunters on Wednesday published more than 1 million records from universities on the group’s private leak site, which the gang used […]
Eleven Labs raises $500 million from Sequoia at $11 billion valuation
Voice AI company ElevenLabs today announced that it has raised $500 million in a new funding round led by Sequoia Capital, an investor in the startup’s final second round of bidding. Sequoia partner Andrew Reed will join the company’s board of directors. The company is now valued at $11 billion, more than triple the valuation […]