Shopify’s AI shopping agent is preparing to change everything, executives say
Shopify is gearing up for a lifelong transformation, said Harley Finkelstein, the company’s president. At this year’s Upfront Summit in Los Angeles, the longtime e-commerce veteran talked about how the company is fully committed to agent shopping. Shopify is the second largest e-commerce provider in the United States after Amazon. But Finkelstein says only about […]
Apple quietly releases AirPods Max 2
In a surprise announcement on Monday, Apple unveiled AirPods Max 2, the long-awaited successor to its 2020 premium headphones. The Max 2 costs $549 and features active noise cancellation, Apple’s audio-only H2 chip, support for live translation, better sound quality, and more. The headphones will be available for pre-order starting March 25th in Midnight, Starlight, […]
Billionaires made promises, but now some want to leave
In 2010, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates launched a disarmingly simple campaign to get the wealthiest people on the planet to publicly commit to giving away most of their money. It seemed like the moment called for it. The technology industry was producing billionaires faster than any other industry in history, and the question of […]
ByteDance reportedly pauses global launch of Seedance 2.0 video generator
According to a report in The Information, ByteDance has paused plans to launch a new AI video model globally. The Chinese company, best known as the parent company of TikTok (and now a minority shareholder in its U.S. spinoff), launched Seedance 2.0 in China in February. Short videos produced by the models, such as a […]
AI mental illness lawyer warns of risk of mass casualties
Prior to last month’s Tumbler Ridge School shooting in Canada, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootseller spoke to ChatGPT about feelings of isolation and a growing obsession with violence, according to court filings. According to the filing, the chatbot helped Ms. Van Roetselaar plan her attack by validating her feelings, telling her what weapon to use, and […]
Unacademy to be acquired by upGrad in stock-for-stock deal as India’s edtech sector consolidates
Unacademy, once one of India’s most valuable edtech startups, is to be acquired by rival upGrad in an all-stock deal that will combine the country’s two leading online learning platforms. On Sunday, Unacademy co-founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal said in a post on X that the two companies have signed a term sheet with upGrad […]
Wiz investors unravel Google’s $32 billion acquisition
Google completed its $32 billion acquisition of cybersecurity company Wiz this week. This is the largest acquisition in Google’s history, and the largest acquisition ever of a venture-backed startup. In the latest episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan, Sean O’Kane, and I are joined by Shardul Shah, a partner at Index Ventures, Wiz’s largest […]
Rivian’s RJ Scaringe thinks we’re developing robots completely wrong
For those who don’t know, RJ Scaringe, Rivian’s founder and CEO, runs another company. If you count, this is the third company. And this time we’re focusing on robotics. The serial entrepreneur is best known for Rivian, the up-and-coming EV maker that gained attention in 2018 after debuting an electric truck with its now-famous gear […]
US Army announces contract worth up to $20 billion with Anduril
The U.S. Army announced late Friday that it had signed a 10-year contract with defense technology startup Anduril. The deal could be worth up to $20 billion. The agreement begins with a five-year “base term,” with an option to extend for an additional five years, and includes Anduril’s hardware, software, infrastructure and services, according to […]
Honda will discontinue EVs and have no chance of competing in the future.
We get it; with incentives being cut and Chinese automakers knocking on the door, it’s not an easy time for traditional automakers to sell electric cars. But Honda takes it to another level. This week, Honda discontinued its meager and frankly hopeless EV program. What little motivation Honda had to compete in the EV space […]