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Boox Palma 2: A great little e-reader with bigger ambitions

The Palma is a strange product. It’s a small e-reader with far bigger gadget ambitions. On its site, Boox describes the product as a “distraction-free device that lets you reclaim your focus in the exact middle between tech and life.” In a lot of ways, the company’s ambitions appear to mirror those of Light Phone’s by […]

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VCs on how to ‘survive and thrive’ after a down round

Founders hope that their startups continually raise larger funding rounds at escalating valuations. But unexpected challenges, such as a global health crisis or a sudden surge in interest rates, can have a significant impact on a company’s ability to maintain its valuations. Some of these startups may have to resort to down rounds, which are […]

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Murder trial for tech exec Bob Lee enters next phase

Roughly 19 months after the fatal stabbing of tech exec Bob Lee in San Francisco attracted the nation’s attention, the trial of the man accused of killing him, tech entrepreneur and consultant Nima Momeni, will soon enter its next phrase. It should be riveting, if the prosecution’s newly wrapped case against Momeni is any indication. […]

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OpenAI loses another lead safety researcher, Lilian Weng

Another one of OpenAI’s lead safety researchers, Lilian Weng, announced on Friday she is departing the startup. Weng served as VP of research and safety since August, and before that, was the head of the OpenAI’s safety systems team. In a post on X, Weng said that “after 7 years at OpenAI, I feel ready […]

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Upwind, an Israeli cloud cybersecurity startup, is raising $100M at a $850-900M valuation, say sources

Cybersecurity continues to command a lot of attention from enterprises looking for better protection from malicious hackers, and VCs want in on the action. In the latest example, TechCrunch has learned and confirmed that Upwind — a specialist in assessing and securing cloud infrastructure — is closing in on a $100 million round at a […]

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ChatGPT told 2M people to get their election news elsewhere — and rejected 250K deepfakes

Now that the election is over, the dissection can begin. As this is the first election in which AI chatbots played a significant part of voters’ information diets, even approximate numbers are interesting to think about. For instance, OpenAI has stated that it told around 2 million users of ChatGPT to go look somewhere else. […]

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Benchmark, Index, others are in a wild unsolicited bidding war over Anysphere, maker of Cursor

There isn’t a shortage of AI-powered coding assistance startups. They include Augment, Codeium, Magic, and Poolside. However, Cursor has become one of the most popular. Its developer, Anysphere, has seen its revenue grow from $4 million annualized recurring revenue (ARR) in April to $4 million a month as of last month, according to a person […]

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‘Whatever you want Ben’: Inside Ben Horowitz’s cozy relationship with the Las Vegas Police Department

When Skydio, a young maker of drones in San Mateo, California, sent a customer proposal in 2023 to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, its chief of staff, Mike Gennaro, forwarded the email to VC Ben Horowitz. “Which deployment are you looking to do?” Horowitz wrote back. “Whatever you want, Ben,” Gennaro replied, according to […]

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What does Trump’s election mean for the TikTok ban?

As TikTok stares down an impending federal ban, Donald Trump’s win in the presidential election could be a lifeline. It’s a plot twist for the embattled, Chinese-owned social media company. During Trump’s last presidency, the president-elect had been the one to initiate the calls to ban TikTok, which only petered out because he didn’t win […]

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Monarch Tractor lays off 10% in restructuring towards software and licensing AV tech

Monarch Tractor has laid off around 10% of its workforce as part of a restructuring that will see it prioritize non-agricultural customers, license its autonomous technology, and boost sales of its AI-powered farm management software, TechCrunch has learned. Around 35 employees were cut this week by the Livermore, California-based autonomous electric tractor startup that has […]

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Startup land wasn’t as quiet this week as you might’ve expected

Welcome to Startups Weekly — your weekly recap of everything you can’t miss from the world of startups. Want it in your inbox every Friday? Sign up here! This week probably wasn’t the best one to make any type of big announcement. But when it comes to startups, there are quite a few contrarians, leaving us […]

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Supersonic aircraft startup Exosonic is shutting down

Exosonic, a startup developing supersonic commercial air travel and UAV tech, is winding down after five years of operation. In an update posted to its website, Exosonic said it was unable to find the traction necessary to continue operations.  “Although the founders and team still believe in the need/desire for quiet supersonic flight and supersonic […]

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Trump included Elon Musk on call with Zelenskyy

President-elect Donald Trump looped in Elon Musk on his phone call with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday, according to Axios. As one of Trump’s top campaign donors, Musk has forged a strong alliance with the incoming president. The Tesla CEO has been rumored as a candidate for a position in Trump’s cabinet, and his […]

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Tesla is part of the trillion-dollar club again

Tesla shares have popped since the U.S. election as investors bet that a Trump presidency will benefit the automaker led by ally Elon Musk. Tesla’s shares have rallied nearly 30% since Tuesday, including an increase Friday morning that pushed the company’s market cap past the $1 trillion mark. The share spike is largely related to […]

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The Beatles’ AI-assisted track ‘Now and Then’ is nominated for two Grammy awards

The Beatles have been nominated for two Grammy awards this year, and no, we did not accidentally fall into a time warp back to the 1960s. The Beatles’ song “Now and Then,” refined with the use of AI and released last year, is up for Record of the Year and Best Rock Performance. So, the […]

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