Meta is reportedly investing nearly $15 billion in the data-labeling firm Scale AI and taking a 49% stake in the startup, while also bringing on CEO Alexandr Wang to help lead a new “superintelligence” lab within the company. The deal is reminiscent of Meta’s previous large and risky bets, such as its $19 billion acquisition […]
There are some headlines making the rounds claiming that TechCrunch is “pulling out of Europe” and shuttering its coverage of European startups. This is flat-out wrong. It misrepresents who we are, what we do, and — most of all — what we believe. The recent changes at TechCrunch are not about retreat. They are about […]
When Apple first unveiled Image Playground last year, the company touted it as a quick and easy way to generate personalized, original images with the help of Apple Intelligence. Upon launch, the app was met with skepticism, as some users were disappointed by its limitations and low-quality results. For example, one Reddit user was surprised […]
Los Angeles-based Coco Robotics, a startup building last-mile delivery robots, announced it raised $80 million on Wednesday. The funding round included angel investors Sam Altman and Max Altman, both returning investors, in addition to VC firms like Pelion Venture Partners and Offline Ventures, among others. This brings the company’s total funding to more than $120 […]
At WWDC 2025 on Monday, Apple unveiled a series of new features that will launch with iOS 26 this fall across its apps. These include significant updates like Call Screening, more travel-friendly features in Wallet, and highly-requested group chat features in Messages. Some of these updates include Apple Intelligence, like Live Translation. Others, like Apple […]
Geothermal frontrunner Fervo Energy said Wednesday that it had secured $206 million in financing to continue work on a new power plant in Utah. The startup is developing what promises to be the largest enhanced geothermal power plant in the world. The initial phase of Cape Station is expected to come online next year and […]
A U.S. government website designed to inform the public about vaccines has been defaced and now hosts apparently AI-generated spam. The domain, which belongs to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), appears to have been hosting the same kind of content — mostly gay-themed and LGBTQ+ posts — since at least May […]
Apple will begin using AI technology to power the discovery of apps on the App Store, the company announced at this week’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC 25). In a session focused on updates to App Store Connect, its app distribution platform for developers, the company announced it will introduce App Store Tags — labels that […]
Snapchat on Wednesday announced the launch of a new Snapchat+ tier called “Lens+.” The new tier costs $8.99 per month and, as its name suggests, is centered around giving users access to exclusive Lenses and AR experiences. In addition to giving users access to the perks unlocked with the standard $3.99 per month Snapchat+ tier, […]
Meta said Wednesday that it is adding video editing capabilities to Meta AI that let users edit short videos using preset AI prompts to change costumes, locations, and styles. With these new features, the company is taking on rivals like Google that have been steadily adding generative AI video tools to their apps, as well […]