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A comprehensive list of 2024 tech layoffs

Cody Corrall, Alyssa Stringer — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 22:00:00 +0000

The tech layoff wave is still going strong in 2024. Following significant workforce reductions in 2022 and 2023, this year has already seen 60,000 job cuts across 254 companies, according to independent layoffs tracker Layoffs.fyi. Companies like Tesla, Amazon, Google, TikTok, Snap and Microsoft have conducted sizable layoffs in the first months of 2024. Smaller-sized […]

Cohere co-founder Nick Frosst thinks everyone needs to be more realistic about what AI can and cannot do

Rebecca Szkutak — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 18:15:05 +0000

AI companies are gobbling up investor money and securing sky-high valuations early in their life cycle. This dynamic has many calling the AI industry a bubble. Nick Frosst, a co-founder of Cohere, which builds custom AI models for enterprise customers, recently said on TechCrunch’s Found podcast that he doesn’t think the AI industry is in […]

Flint Capital raises a $160M through an unusual fund-raising strategy

Margaux MacColl — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 17:00:00 +0000

Flint Capital just closed its third fund at $160 million. Its has a unique strategy for finding its limited partner investors.

From Skims to Stripe, here are the startups that are likely — or definitely — not having IPOs this year

Rebecca Szkutak — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 22:05:00 +0000

Last year’s investor dreams of a strong 2024 IPO pipeline have faded, if not fully disappeared, as we settle in to the second half of the year. This year delivered four venture-backed tech IPOs — Reddit, Astera Labs, Ibotta and Rubrik — in March and April, which made it seem like this year could spur […]

Techstars is laying off 17%, ending its J.P. Morgan-backed programs

Dominic-Madori Davis — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 20:31:34 +0000

Techstars is cutting 17% of its staff and will end its $80 million J.P. Morgan-backed AdvancingCities program once the fund is completely deployed.

Flourish Ventures on repeat founders, emerging markets and when not to hop on the AI bandwagon

Mary Ann Azevedo — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 14:24:42 +0000

In today’s episode of Equity Podcast, Mary Ann Azevedo talked to Flourish Ventures co-founders Tilman Ehrbeck, Emmalyn Shaw and Arjuna Costa about a variety of topics, including how their investment themes have evolved in the past five years and what trends they’re most excited about. We also got their opinion on M&A deals in fintech, […]

Nearly a decade before co-founding Cohere, Nick Frosst thought he was late to AI

Rebecca Szkutak, Dominic-Madori Davis — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 17:10:07 +0000

When Nick Frosst was in college over a decade ago, he was worried he was a little late to the AI game. Frosst, a co-founder of enterprise AI startup Cohere, said on a recent episode of TechCrunch’s Found podcast that he came to this conclusion in 2012 after Geoffrey Hinton released his research that showed […]

From golf to hunting, a new crop of startups want to make these experiences even better

Rebecca Szkutak — Sun, 04 Aug 2024 20:00:00 +0000

COVID-19 pushed people to take up outdoor activities. Now, startups are helping companies and consumers keep up with demand.

AI friends, deepfake foes and which Tiger Global partner is leaving now

Kirsten Korosec, Rebecca Bellan, Devin Coldewey — Fri, 02 Aug 2024 14:30:00 +0000

AI hardware has taken on a new shape with Friend’s $99 necklace — a pendant that gives you an AI friend to talk to and … that’s about it. Friend’s pitch is that its wearable can help combat loneliness, but other AI hardware products that have come to market lately — like Humane’s Ai Pin […]

Rediff, once an internet pioneer in India, sells majority stake for $3M

Manish Singh — Fri, 02 Aug 2024 11:08:24 +0000

Payments infrastructure firm Infibeam Avenues has acquired a majority 54% stake in Rediff.com for up to $3 million, a dramatic twist of fate for the 28-year-old business that was the first Indian internet firm to list on Nasdaq back in the year 2000. Founded in 1996, Rediff rode the initial dot-com wave to become one […]

How filming a cappella concerts and dance recitals led Northzone’s newest partner Molly Alter to a career in VC

Rebecca Szkutak — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 19:03:39 +0000

Molly Alter wears a lot of hats. She’s a mocumentary filmmaker working on a project about an alternate reality where charades is big business. She’s a caesar salad connoisseur and documents her rankings of different restaurants’ attempts on a blog called JULIUS. She’s also Northzone’s newest partner. Alter’s path to venture capital was not an […]

Sequoia-backed Knowde raises Series C at a valuation cut

Rebecca Szkutak — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 17:03:56 +0000

The San Jose-based startup raised $60 million in a round that values it lower than the $500 million valuation it garnered in its most recent round, according to multiple sources.

Over 100 VCs pledge support for Kamala Harris

Kyle Wiggers — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:44:15 +0000

More than 100 VCs, including Reid Hoffman, Vinod Khosla and Mark Cuban have pledged to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris in the upcoming U.S. presidential election. Mobilizing under the group VCsForKamala, the VCs are also soliciting donations for Harris’ campaign. But the organizers say the effort isn’t meant to align with any one political […]

TechCrunch Minute: Investors pour money into non-alcoholic beverages

Anthony Ha — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:00:00 +0000

Startups are attracting serious funding to provide fun, alcohol-free drink options at the bar and in other social contexts. Earlier this year, canned water company Liquid Death announced that it has raised $67 million in new funding at a $1.4 billion valuation. And Athletic Brewing Company, which describes itself as America’s largest non-alcoholic brewery, said […]

Global startup funding is picking up with AI still in the spotlight

Mary Ann Azevedo — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:10:00 +0000

Global startup funding was up 16% in the second quarter, according to Crunchbase data, led by an uptick in mega-rounds. That increase was led, unsurprisingly, by the AI sector. Funding to companies in AI made up 30% of all dollars invested and actually doubled quarter over quarter to $24 billion. On today’s episode of TechCrunch’s […]

Leaf helps farms decipher the troves of data they generate

Rebecca Szkutak — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:03:34 +0000

Farms produce a lot of data. From machines to irrigation systems, farms generate a lot of information that could be helpful to both them and the companies that serve them. Traditionally this data has been siloed across different formats, making it hard to read and build off of. Leaf is trying to change that. New […]

Tiger Global partner Alex Cook to leave firm, sources say

Manish Singh — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 03:50:48 +0000

Alex Cook, a partner at Tiger Global who oversaw some of its largest fintech investments and India deals, is departing the firm after a tenure of nearly seven years, three people familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. Cook has briefed multiple people around him about his departure news in recent days, although he hasn’t explained […]

SEC charges BitClout founder Nader Al-Naji with fraud; says proceeds paid for L.A. mansion, gifts

Margaux MacColl — Tue, 30 Jul 2024 19:56:10 +0000

The founder of once-hyped crypto startup BitClout is facing trouble. On Tuesday, the SEC charged him with fraud and other offenses.

Hey, there ARE growth funds in Europe — Kennet raises $287M for its largest fund to date

Mike Butcher — Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:53:41 +0000

Europe is routinely castigated by tech industry observers for having too few “growth capital” funds, and, compared to the U.S., that’s true. That said, it is nowhere near nonexistent on this front. To wit: Growth equity investor Kennet of London just announced it has raised €266 million for its largest fund to date, Kennet VI, […]

Moxxie Ventures, led by ex-Twitter media head, raises $95M third fund

Marina Temkin — Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:00:00 +0000

The fundraising environment is challenging for emerging managers, defined as VC firms raising their first through third time. But Katie Jacobs Stanton, a former head of media at Twitter who founded Moxxie Ventures in 2019, said that she had a much easier time than she was expecting when raising funds for her third time. Moxxie, […]