Meticulous shows off its smart espresso machine at CES 2025

Meticulous is showcasing its smart espresso maker, which it says is the world’s first robotic lever espresso machine, at CES 2025 in Las Vegas this week. The prototype has raised nearly $5 million in funding on Kickstarter and another $1.6 million million on Indiegogo. The company’s f…Read More

UK uses AI to tackle ‘bid-rigging’ collusion in public procurement contracts

The U.K’s competition authority already has a lot on its plate in terms of tackling Big Tech’s growing reach across the technological spectrum, but closer to home it’s dealing with a different kind of anti-competitive threat — one it reckons AI is well-equipped to addre…Read More

United Airlines accelerates its Starlink rollout, with first commercial flight planned for spring

A few months ago, United Airlines announced its deal with Starlink to offer in-flight internet access for its passengers. At the time, the airline said it would start testing the new service in early 2024 and then offer it on passenger flights later…Read More

What will this year bring in VC? We asked a few investors

A new year brings with it hope for a better tomorrow — kind of, at least. In the world of venture capital, nothing is quite predictable. The number of firms in the U.S. has taken a sharp dip as risk-averse institutional investors splash money on only the biggest names in Silicon Valley, a…Read More

US sanctions Chinese cyber firm linked to Flax Typhoon hacks

U.S. officials say the sanctioned Chinese firm provided botnet infrastructure for the China-backed hacking group Flax Typhoon
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Spotify’s partner program for podcast hosts is now available

Spotify announced Thursday the launch of its new “Partner Program” that lets popular podcast hosts monetize their video content. Spotify’s new program gives qualifying creators on its platform opportunities for extra income beyond just advertising revenue, such as video payouts. The pro…Read More

Internal SpaceX documents show the sweet stock deals offered to investors like a16z, Gigafund

Like many highly valued startups, SpaceX sometimes allows its employees to cash out some of their shares by selling to company-authorized outside investors. TechCrunch has gotten a peek at an internal SpaceX document about such a tender offer from May…Read More

Tech services firm WWT acquires Canadian IT provider Softchoice in all-cash deal

One last mega-deal closed out an eventful 2024. On Tuesday, World Wide Technology (WWT), a tech services company based in St. Louis, announced it has agreed to acquire Canadian IT provider Softchoice in a deal that values the latter at C$1.8 billion (~$1.25 billion).…Read More

Nvidia completes acquisition of AI infrastructure startup Run:ai

Nvidia has completed its acquisition of Run:ai, an Israeli startup that helps manage and optimize AI hardware infrastructure. As part of the merger, Run:ai said its software, which currently only works with Nvidia products, will be open sourced, meaning Nvidia rivals like AMD and…Read More

Africa’s newest fintech unicorns are winning by keeping their feet on the ground

Africa’s tech ecosystem just got a boost of attention, with South Africa’s TymeBank and Nigeria’s Moniepoint both raising funds in recent weeks at valuations of over $1 billion and joining the coveted unicorn pantheon. But those valuations don’t just reflect i…Read More

How to watch CES 2025’s press conferences

CES kicks off January 7. The annual Las Vegas event sets the tone of the year’s consumer electronics and automotive industries. As always, TechCrunch will be there, sniffing stories from the most exciting startups and tech giants. If you really want a piece of the action without paying for the hotel and…Read More

Bench shuts down, leaving thousands of businesses without access to accounting and tax docs

Bench, a Canada-based accounting startup that offered software-as-a-service for small and medium-sized businesses, has abruptly shut down, according to a notice posted on its website.   “We regret to inform you that as of December 27, 2024, the Bench p…Read More

Google is using Anthropic’s Claude to improve its Gemini AI

Contractors working on Google Gemini are comparing its responses to Claude’s, according to internal correspondence seen by TechCrunch.
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Honda and Nissan plan major merger focused on ‘intelligence and electrification’

Japanese car giants Honda and Nissan are working out the details of a major merger that could create the world’s third-largest automaker, as the companies look to survive in an industry faced with uncertainty. The Tesla-led shift toward electric vehicles, and Chi…Read More

Apple might be working on a smart doorbell

There’s been a lot of reporting in recent months around Apple’s efforts to expand its footprint in customers’ homes with in-development products like a wall-mounted smart home hub. According to a new report in Bloomberg, that strategy could also include a smart doorbell. This doorbell would use Apple…Read More