TechCrunch Daily Crunch: Recent Episodes
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Everything you need to know about Apple Event 2023; The latest in startup business news Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apple is revealing the iPhone 15 at a special event; MGM Resorts blames ‘cybersecurity issue’ for ongoing outage; Instacart’s IPO price range puts it close to decacorn status Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
YouTube confirms it’s testing a games offering called ‘Playables’; Tubi sees impressive growth; OpenAI will host its first developer conference Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Meta avatars are finally getting legs (in beta); Snapchat launches a new AI selfie feature; Apple will announce the iPhone 15 on September 12th Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
DoorDash launches AI-powered voice ordering technology for restaurants; OpenAI launches a ChatGPT plan for enterprise customers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Tesla investors might get payout from SEC settlement; YouTube demystifies the Shorts algorithm, views and answers other creator questions; Uber, squeezed by insurance, increases minimum age for new drivers in California Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Starbucks is experimenting with ‘scanless checkout’ for drive-through users; Walmart is adding Wing drone deliveries to limited Superstores this year; Amazon brings new AI-driven features to Thursday Night Football Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Google TV adds 25 more free channels; YouTube tests a search feature where users hum to identify songs; Spotify introduces new podcaster tools Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Netflix says its DVD-by-mail customers get to keep their final shipment of discs; Meta releases an AI model that can transcribe and translate close to 100 languages; TikTok now lets brands buy ads that appear in the app’s search results Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Amazon launches a Fire TV Channels app with 400+ free ad-supported TV channels; Apple Podcasts gain new creator tools, including Subscription Analytics and Linkfire integration; YouTube is working on a plan to compensate artists and rightsholders for AI music Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Twitch is about to hand streamers a way to control who can watch; Elon Musk says X’s ‘block’ feature is going away; Match Group’s background check provider Garbo ends its partnership Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Cruise and Waymo see a surge in robotaxi app downloads; Tumblr rolls out a new web interface; Google’s new Transparency Center outlines its product policies, reporting tools and more Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Amazon Music Unlimited is raising prices for Prime members, family plan users; Snapchat’s My AI goes rogue, posts to Stories; The latest in startup business news Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment cuts costs a year after buying Redbox; YouTube Music is adding a TikTok-style ‘Samples’ short-form video feed; Google Photos adds a scrapbook-like Memories view feature aided by AI Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Telegram rolls out its Stories feature to all users; Netflix begins testing its games on TVs and computers in Canada and U.K.; Amazon taps generative AI to enhance product reviews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried's bail revoked ahead of October trial; US cyber board to investigate Microsoft hack of government emails; Elon Musk says he is actually going to fight Mark Zuckerberg Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Disney is cracking down on password sharing; Lyft takes a page from Uber’s playbook: Ads Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Threads now hooks into Instagram DMs; Gmail app gets highly requested native translation feature; Free ad-supported TV streaming services are booming, 1 in 3 U.S. viewers tune in
Lyft looks to kill surge pricing; Apple Music adds a new algorithmic station to let users discover new music; Netflix launches a game controller app for playing games on your TV.
Zoom's new asynchronous video tool; DoorDash expands retail delivery offerings; TikTok is hosting a talent show
Nikola CEO steps down, replaced by chairman; Fisker reveals all-electric Alaska pickup, 3 other EV prototypes; Amazon Music teams up with Bandsintown to let fans shop merch from popular artists
TikTok competitor Triller files to go public; Pinterest touts Amazon partnership progress;Google is introducing a few new Search updates that are designed to help users stay in control of their personal information, privacy and online safety
Amazon now offers Fresh grocery delivery to non-Prime members in select US cities; X, formerly Twitter, now lets paid users hide their checkmarks; Tinder tests AI photo selection feature to help users build profiles
YouTube star MrBeast sues ghost kitchen behind MrBeast Burger; Meta is reportedly preparing to release AI-powered chatbots with different personas; YouTube experiments with AI auto-generated video summaries
Amazon achieved its ‘fastest Prime speeds ever; Apple confirms a Screen Time bug is causing settings not to stick; Walmart's billion dollar buyout
NASA is launching its own streaming service later this year; Apple's App Store tightens up on user privacy with new rules for app developers; Hackers are infecting Call of Duty players with a self-spreading malware
Mastodon is launching merch to help fund its development efforts; WhatsApp now lets you record and share short video messages directly in chats; Peacock lags behind competitors, gains just 2M subs for Q2
Walmart+ adds travel benefits to its list of perks; Bumble launches a separate BFF app for friend friending; Mastadon gets a "For You" feed
Meta’s Threads app is rolling out a Following feed; Google Search is making it easier to find relevant information on women’s sports; Spotify shares it's second-quarter earnings
Netflix rolls out ‘My Netflix’; Instagram is launching creator subscriptions in Australia, Canada and The UK.
Top AI companies visit the White House to make 'voluntary' safety commitments; FedNow is finally live in the US; Amazon is building a $120M facility in Florida for Project Kuiper satellite processing
Netflix’s first live sporting event arrives in November; Google is testing an AI tool that can write news articles; Amazon’s palm-scanning payment technology is coming to all 500+ Whole Foods
Netflix removes its basic tier in the US and the UK; Apple testing a ChatGPT-like AI chatbot; WhatsApp launches standalone smartwatch app for Wear OS
Cameo announces more layoffs; Threads update adds translation and a flurry of minor improvements; TikTok launches its music streaming service in Australia, Mexico and Singapore
Twitter tweaks its new revenue-sharing policy for creators to expand access, increase rate limits; YouTube is testing a new ‘Stable Volume’ feature across its mobile apps; Facebook puts more emphasis on video again with new discovery and editing tools
Meta confirms it is blocking EU-based users from accessing Threads via VPN; Twitter starts sharing ad revenue with verified creators; Designers sue Shein over AI ripoffs of their work.
Instagram’s new Threads app for iOS is out now with its first update; Amazon boasts record sales for Prime Day; Apple introduces bilingual Siri
Domino's is coming to Uber Eats; TikTok content to be featured on 3K+ Redbox kiosks; US consumers spent $6.4 billion on the first day of Amazon’s Prime Day event
Threads reaches 100 million users in under a week; Twitch launches a discovery feed; The latest in startup business news
Safe streets activists in San Francisco realized they can disable Cruise and Waymo robotaxis by placing a traffic cone on a vehicle’s hood; As Threads soars, Twitter rival Bluesky hits its first million installs; OpenAI makes GPT-4 generally available
TikTok launches a music streaming service in Brazil and Indonesia; Spotify is removing App Store payment option for legacy subscribers; Twitter threatens to sue Meta over its new Threads app
Meta's Twitter alternative goes live; Twitter silently removes login requirement for viewing tweets; NYC’s anti-bias law for hiring algorithms goes into effect
Twitter said only verified users will be able to access TweetDeck after 30 days; Kentucky is the first state to mandate Tesla's charging plug; Rivian delivers first electric vans to Amazon in Europe
Silent lurkers might be forced to create a Twitter account; Fidelity deepens valuation cut for Reddit and Discord; Schools say US teachers’ retirement fund was breached by MOVEit hackers
Snapchat+ reaches 4 million paid subscribers since launching a year ago; You can see who viewed your TikTok profile; DoorDash will give delivery workers the option to be paid a guaranteed hourly minimum rate
Google's new "Shop" tab; A slew of new features from Doordash; The latest in startup business news
TikTok’s new monetization feature invites creators to make video ads for a chance to earn money; TikTok and Meta update their parental controls
Nearly six months after Google officially shut down its cloud gaming service Stadia, it appears the company may be launching a similar product through YouTube; Amazon wants to partner with small businesses, such as bodegas and IT shops, so that they can become delivery partners; DeepMind claims its next chatbot will rival ChatGPT
EV truck maker Nikola suspects foul play in headquarters fire; Washington could be the next state to require Tesla charging standard; Meta to pull news from Facebook and Instagram in Canada
TikTok’s COO is leaving the company; TikTok looks to challenge Amazon and Shein with new e-commerce initiative; Robinhood buys a credit card startup
Microsoft is planning for a supercomputer; Patreon adds e-commerce tools; Bumble is testing a separate BFF app
Spotify’s revamped desktop app; Spotify will reportedly launch hi-fi audio through a costlier premium subscription; Vimeo's AI plans
Hackers threaten to leak 80GB of confidential data stolen from Reddit; Reddit communities adopt alternative forms of protest; The latest in startup business news
"Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, Live Nation agree to disclose fees upfront; US confirms federal agencies hit by MOVEit breach, as hackers list more victims; NASA hits up 7 space companies to take on orbital squad goals
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Twitch announced a new creator tier on Thursday that would restore a more favorable subscription revenue split to streamers who qualify, with some strings attached; Meta announced that it’s rolling out Instagram’s Channels features for broadcasting messages globally; A new Twitter alternative launches on iOS
Paul McCartney used AI to make a new Beatles song; You can now share music on Instagram Notes; Netflix reportedly plans first live sports event
Reddit goes down just as a site-wide protest against its unpopular new API policy kicks off; Tesla’s Supercharger network will strain under the weight of GM and Ford deals; FTC reportedly seeks injunction to stop Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard deal
Netflix sees jump in subs as it begins to curb password sharing in US, says report; Another huge US medical data breach confirmed after Fortra mass-hack; Spotify is officially testing an offline mix
Uber's car sharing service coming to North America; Uber gears up for big sustainability drive; ChatGPT comes to iPad
Google claims that Bard is improving at math and programming; Google Cloud and Salesforce team up; TikTok expands its ‘Series’ paywall feature
Instagram working on an AI chatbot; Netflix announces two new mobile games; Apple's new TipKit
Twitter’s trust and safety lead Ella Irwin resigns; Fidelity has cut Reddit valuation by 41% since 2021 investment; Scammers publish ads for hacking services on government websites
BeReal adds a messaging feature; Meta announces over 20 new games for Quest headsets; Walmart's plan to reduce plastic
Instagram's new user control feature; Instacart's in-app AI search tool; The latest in startup business news
Amazon discontinues celebrity voice feature; Amazon India tests dine-in payments The latest feature from instacart.
Ford to bring Tesla’s charging tech into its future EVs; Following successful mission, Virgin Galactic targeting June for first commercial spaceflight; Meta to limit how it uses ad data to boost Facebook Marketplace
Twitter introduces a new $5,000-per-month API tier; OpenAI’s ChatGPT app tops 500K downloads in just 6 days; YouTube Stories are shutting down June 26
Another round of layoffs for Meta; Apple's latest iOS 17 update; the latest in startup business news
Netflix begins its password sharing crackdown; Peloton relaunches its workout app; Spotify may use AI to make host-read podcast ads that sound like real people
WhatsApp's latest update; LinkedIn brings verification to job posts; TikTok sues Montana
YouTube will no longer be deleting videos from inactive accounts; Meta's big bet on AI; Google updates it's podcast search results.
Uber has family plans; Twitter's latest user research; New York Times gets an audio app
Google's latest security push; WNBA app rolls out TikTok-style video feed; Bumble's new Spotify feature
WhatsApp's new "Chat Lock" feature; Vice files for bankruptcy; TikTok adds a mental health awareness hub
Elon Musk appoints new Twitter CEO, NBCU’s Linda Yaccarino; Tinder will remove social handles from bios as part of its updated community guidelines; Toyota Japan exposed millions of vehicles’ location data for a decade
Another peleton recall; The latest updates from Pinterest; Microsoft's strategic investment
TikTok's hub to help brands; Amazon’s latest shopping experience; IBM gets an AI service.
SoundCloud debuts a fan engagement tool for artists; Shopify sells 6 River Systems to new owner; The latest in startup business news
Samsung surpasses Apple in smartphone shipments by 1% amid persisting market decline; Apple introduces 20 more games to Apple Arcade; Security researcher finds trove of Capita data exposed online
Shopify to reduce workforce by 20%, sells logistics business to Flexport for 13% equity; Microsoft doubles down on AI with new Bing features; Hugging Face and ServiceNow release a free code-generating model
Fortnite is now available on Fire TV; the latest enhancements from Reddit; TikTok's revamped creator fund
Roku touts its new ad products; Peacock launches ‘Must ShopTV’; The latest rollout from Meta
YouTube gives advertisers new ad formats across Shorts; Apple releases first ‘rapid’ security fixes; Amazon expands it's free TV streaming service
Shares of First Republic are off 40% on reports that the government may step in; Brave Search doesn’t use Bing’s index anymore; Reddit is testing Discord-like channels for community chat
Pinterest partners with Amazon; YouTube Music officially rolls out podcasts; The latest in startup business news
TikTok's in-app tool test; The latest update from Snap; Meta beats revenue expectations
YouTube continues to see ad revenue decline; GM is killing off the Chevy Bolt and Bolt EUV; OpenAI's business plan for ChatGPT
Apple captures nearly half of global refurbished smartphone market; Snapchat sees a spike in 1 star reviews; Google brings generative AI to cybersecurity
Twitter seemingly now requires all advertisers to have a verified checkmark; Google’s Bard AI chatbot can now generate and debug code; Lyft to make ‘significant’ cuts across ride-hailing company
Google Fi gets a rebrand; Twitter alternative Bluesky hits Android; Twitter’s legacy blue check mark era is officially over
Spotify's latest update; News on Netflix’s ad-supported plan; The latest in startup business news
Reddit to begin charging for use of its API; Netflix kisses mail-order DVDs goodbye; Marvel’s new fitness app
Apple launches Apple Card's savings accounts; Twitter's new downranking policy; The latest startup business news
Spotify is shutting down Heardle, the Wordle-like music guessing game it bought last year; Washington Uber and Lyft drivers win paid family and medical leave; Parler to be acquired by digital media company Starboard, shut down temporarily.
With Bedrock, Amazon enters the generative AI race; Spotify introduces an iPhone Lock Screen widget for easy access to its app; More newsrooms bail on Twitter as Musk meddles with account labels
Google's new Maps features; Pinterest gets news safety tools; The latest linkedin updates
Google TV expands its free streaming lineup; Instagram's latest update; TikTok considers ditching its ‘Friends’ tab
YouTube Premium adds more perks; New snapchat lenses have arrived for Microsoft; A bug reported in Twitter circle
With latest hit Lemon8, ByteDance again learns from the China playbook; Twitter won’t let you retweet, like or reply to Substack links; ‘The Acolyte’ Star Wars series will debut on Disney+ in 2024
Apple re-invents the ipod; Messenger adds multi-player games; Lyft relaunches EV service
Google's new account deletion policy for Android Apps; Meta's generative AI plans; Stripe's latest numbers
Amazon's startup goals; TikTok's $15 million fine; Pinterest expands it's Creator Fund.
Spotify shutting down its live audio app; Youtube's Coachella plans; Google gets new travel features
Twitter's new API plan; Netflix's latest gaming announcement; Updates on a twitter alternative
1,100+ notable signatories just signed an open letter asking ‘all AI labs to immediately pause for at least 6 months’; Amazon now lets T-Mobile customers make and receive calls via an Alexa-enabled device; WWDC returns to Apple Park June 5
TikTok launches a platform for marketers; Another country bans TikTok from government managed devices; A Youtube Frontier bundle
FTC proposes new rule to make it easier to cancel free trials and subscriptions; Twitter will kill ‘legacy’ blue checks on April 1; Ford to build next-gen EV truck at $5.6B factory in 2025
Doordash gets new retail partners; ChatGPT's internet upgrade; The latest in startup business news
Instagram's latest ad experiment; Spotify brings audiobook to Canada; Adobe's AI product promise
Duoling delves into music; Netflix gets more video games; A new verification process for Twitter Blue subscribers
SVB Financial files for Ch. 11 bankruptcy protection, says it has $2.2B in liquidity; Meta launches paid verification on Instagram and Facebook in the US; YouTube reinstates Donald Trump’s account
YouTube TV hikes price to $72.99; More details on Microsoft’s new Power Platform AI copilot
LinkedIn expands its generative AI; Sling TV's latest features; Substack introduces it's chat feature
The latest Microsoft layoffs; Duolingo launches new subscription tier; OpenAI releases GPT-4
Spotify's plans for it's AI DJ feature; Meta winds down support for NFTs; TuneIn's interactive map feature
Silicon Valley Bank is being shut down by regulators; SEC charges Blackbaud for failing to disclose ‘full impact’ of ransomware attack; Telehealth startup Cerebral shared millions of patients’ data with advertisers
Facebook’s latest test; Reddit’s new TikTok inspired feature. Amazon closes 8 Amazon go stores
Secret Service and ICE conducted warrantless stingray surveillance, says watchdog; VW-backed Scout Motors to build $2B factory in South Carolina; India’s central bank slaps penalty on Amazon’s payments unit
Instagram tests its age verification tools; Pinterest tests a new premium video ad format; Target will allow you to return items from your car
Google addresses it's macbook battery drain problem; Rivian's latest earnings; Bluesky hits the app store
Snapchat launches an AI chatbot; The latest update from Reddit; Spotify kills it's heart button
Warner Bros. Discovery continues to lose money despite success of ‘The Last of Us’ and ‘Hogwarts Legacy’; Poshmark lays off employees just two months after being acquired by Naver; DOJ suit could represent significant stumbling block for $20B Adobe-Figma deal
Google’s Canadian content block; Podcasts are coming soon to youtube music; Twitch’s new experiments hub
Coming up: Meta Quest goes controller-less; Tumblr's iOS revenue increase; The latest in startup business news
Atlassian and Envoy briefly blame each other for data breach; FTC’s new Office of Technology will help mop up tech ‘oozing with snake oil’; Lyft is charging riders wait time fees — but drivers aren't reaping the rewards
Instagram’s new broadcast chat feature, Snapchat announces 750 million monthly active users; Paramount+ reaches 56M subs
Snap introduces ray tracing technology; Roku soars past revenue expectations; Instacart’s latest features;
Tubi reaches 64M monthly active users; Airbnb posts a record Q4; Meta's improved consumer-facing tool
YouTube's new commercial music licensing resource; Meta planning for a fresh round of layoffs; Has the AI photo app trend already fizzled?
Amazon in talks to buy Indian video giant MX Player; Reddit says hackers accessed employee data following phishing attack; India lifts ban on PayU’s LazyPay and some other lending apps
DoorDash introduces new safety features for riders; Lyft shares get crushed; Yahoo announces staff layoffs
Netflix starts cracking down on password sharing; Google maps gets an update; Disney+ reports its first subscriber loss
Roku partners with DoorDash; Zoom's latest layoffs; Facebook rolls out new comment moderation tools
Apple says it now has 935 million paid subscriptions; Grocery deliverer JOKR doubles down on Brazil as it secures $50M on $1.3B valuation; Google says YouTube Shorts has crossed 50 billion daily views
Is Instagram considering paid verification?; Roblox throwing a Super Bowl party; TikTok introduces a strike system for violations
Netflix's plan to stop account sharing; President Biden calls out Apple and Google; Microsoft plans to update Bing
Meta testing "members only worlds"; New social app from Instagram's co-founders; Spotify's expanded social ambitions
Report: Stripe tried to raise more funding at a $55B-$60B valuation; Google created an AI that can generate music from text descriptions, but won’t release it; Twitter co-founder Biz Stone joins board of audiovisual startup Chroma
Walmart's new "Text to Shop" feature; TikTok expands its DM settings; Peacock tops 20M subscribers
Amazon launches RxPass; Youtube's new plan for college students; Instagram’s new profile photo feature
Spotify employee cuts; Meta expands its partnership with the NBA; Netflix teams up with Bumble;
Google parent Alphabet cuts 6% of its workforce, impacting 12,000 people; Fandom lays off employees across Giant Bomb, GameSpot and Metacritic; India releases guidelines for social media influencers accepting paid promotions
Amazon fined by regulators; Wikipedia's first makeover in over a decade; A Youtube TV upgrade
Netflix refreshes its iPhone app; Oversight Board presses Meta to revise nudity policy; Discord acquires a compliments-based social media app for teens;
Tesla keeps slashing prices, this time by as much as 20%; Backed by Tiger Global, Mayfair emerges from stealth to offer businesses a higher yield on their cash; Google says India antitrust order poses threat to national security
Layoffs at Alphabet; TikTok launches a Talent Manager Portal; HBO Max’s ad-free monthly subscription is increasing
Twitter considers selling usernames; Microsoft launches 365 Basic; Netflix gets livestreaming rights to SAG Awards
An Xfinity Apple Airplay update; Paramount+ orders a live-action ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ series; The latest numbers from App Store developers
Instagram removing the Shop tab; Apple Maps teams with a parking platform; Sling TV rolls out user profiles
Doorstead closes on $21.5M to make sure you always have a tenant for your rental property; Indian fintech KreditBee nears $700 million valuation in new funding; Lumus shows off AR glasses that don’t look too dorky
Google launches HD maps; TikTok adds video-scrubbing thumbnails; Ring brings back the peephole cam
Salesforce to cut workforce by 10%; Doordash introduces "package pick up"; Spotify's new time capsule feature;
Microsoft's first official U.S. union; TikTok expanding it's audience control feature; Apple increasing battery replacement service charges
Details on Amazon's standalone app; US House bans TikTok on lawmakers’ phones; Movano's latest smart ring news.
Uber and Amazon blasted for poor working conditions; An EV-plosion awaits in 2023; The latest in startup business news.
Twitter's stock and crypto update; A holiday tip on ad blockers from the FBI; Password manager giant hacked
Netflix branches out into fitness content; Snapchat's new customization features; The latest from Google play
An upgrade on Amazon's Fire TV; Another new TikTok feature; The latest on Twitter Blue for Business
Google can read your doctor’s bad handwriting; Spotify reimagines their Anchor brand; Instagram's new reel template
Twitter pulls its Spaces group audio feature after Musk run-in with banned journalists; Europe wastes no time warning Musk over ‘arbitrary suspension of journalists’; ‘Black Adam’ arrives on HBO Max following box office bust
Spotify’s grand plan to monetize developers; Another new feature from instagram and the latest in startup business news
Spotify loses some live shows; Tinder launches "relationship goals" and Tinder shuts down its newsletter forum.
TikTok's horizontal full screen mode, Instagram's text update update and two more mobile games come to Netflix
Twitter to remove all legacy verifications; Meta disconnects its Connectivity division; AI art apps are cluttering the App Store’s Top Charts
Instant grocery app Getir acquires its competitor Gorillas; Amid growing concerns from third-party developers, Twitter shuts down Toolbox and other projects; Tesla hopes China boss will bring secret sauce to Gigafactory Texas
WhatsApp rolling out 3D avatars; Amazon's plan to tip your delivery driver; Instagram’s new transparency tools
Google Search’s new topic filters; Update on Apple's first car; Apple loosens grip on App Store pricing
Obviously you love the Daily Crunch, but did you know that we’ve got a whole lineup of truly amazing newsletters from across the site? Sarah’s This Week in Apps is consistently insightful and interesting about what happens on our handheld supercomputers. The Interchange is Mary Ann’s deep dive into the world of fintech startups, and The Station is the summary of everything transportation, lovingly assembled by the incomparable Kirsten. Finally, Greg’s Week in Review is the “oh crap, I didn’t have time to read TechCrunch this week” summary so you don’t make a complete fool of yourself at the watercooler when Monday rolls around.We also have space newsletters, robotics newsletters, and more. Check out the full list, and go on a subscribing spree. Go on, what else is there to do in December? — Christine and Haje
Astra star hire Benjamin Lyon resigns, management team restructured; Google is testing end-to-end encryption for group chats in the Messages app; Florida state tax website bug exposed filers’ data
The Instafest app comes to America; Snapchat's California privacy setting, and Amazon's new AI tool for kids;
WhatsApp's latest feature; Another Twitter alternative gets funding; The latest in startup business news.
NASA's Thanksgiving plans; Youtube's quiz feature coming soon; The latest in startup business news
Another Twitter alternative gains traction; Meta's teen privacy update; Amazon's Wickr Me shutting down in 2023
New Twitter accounts will have to wait 90 days before buying a subscription; Ticketmaster faces antitrust scrutiny after Taylor Swift ticket chaos; OnlyFans partners with Spring to add shopping features
Changes coming to your facebook profile; Fiat talks car sharing and subscription services; GM's 2025 EV plan is still on track.
Google play tightens up security on kids apps; Layoffs looming at Amazon; The latest in startup business news
Shopping comes to youtube shorts; Netflix's new feature; Amazon's latest move into telehealth.
Doordash rolls out new safety features; Amazon launches live sports talk content; Hulu adds more live channels
FTX files for bankruptcy, CEO Sam Bankman-Fried steps down; Musk flip-flops on Twitter verification — brings back (some) ‘Official’ badges; Musk’s lawyer tells Twitter staff they won’t be liable if company violates FTC consent decree
Reddit's new Community Muting feature; Amazon's new delivery drone; An update on the Waymo robotaxi
Twitter sued in class action lawsuit over mass layoffs without proper legal notice; After Stripe and Square, Venmo and PayPal are set to support Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhones; Formula 1’s Toto Wolff, accused of running his team remotely, leans into software
WhatsApps' new discussion group feature, Amazon's corporate hire freeze; Netflix's ad supported plan is here.
Instagram's NFT news; Roku braces for a bumpy 4th quarter; Gmail's new tracking package feature
The end of google hangouts; The latest feature from twitch; and Amazon gets a music catalog
The Bed, Bath & Beyond data breach; Instagram has some explaining to do; Shopify buys a startup company
Twitter will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange on November 8; Europe schools Elon Musk; Elon Musk will reportedly take the CEO role after exec exodus
Meta posts another revenue decline; Layoffs at Zillow; The latest in startup business news
Amazon allows Venmo; The return of Lyft's monthly subscription program; Dr. Who's new home
Bumble combats "cyberflashing"; Australia toughens its privacy laws; Apple increases U.S. subscriptions
Amazon says fear of Google putting off vendors from TV hardware partnership; YouTube Premium’s family plan gets a price hike in several countries; Delhivery falls to all-time low after muted growth report
Reliance launches JioBook, its maiden Android-powered laptop; India fines Google $162 million for anti-competitive practices on Android; Banyan raises $43M to grow its network of item-level purchase data
Rivian hires former Waymo exec for new autonomy, AI role; Soccer legend Lionel Messi plans to get into tech investing via a new Silicon Valley holding company; OnlyFans CEO says adult content will still have a home on the site in 5 years
AI content platform Jasper raises $125M at a $1.5B valuation; Landis grabs $40M to turn renters into homeowners; Apple unveils new entry-level iPad that looks just like the iPad Pro
Kanye West to acquire 'uncancelable' social media platform Parler; Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart launches metaverse shopping experience; Apple is bringing Spatial Audio to cars, starting with Mercedes-Benz
Andreessen Horowitz backs Synonym’s bio-manufacturing facilities; Google is updating its 'Ad' tag to 'Sponsored' for mobile search; Meta’s legs update is not on the horizon yet
Google’s 3D video calling booths, Project Starline, will now be tested in the real world; Uniswap Labs valued at $1.66 billion in $165 million new funding; Analytics operating system Redbird makes data more accessible to non-technical users
After selling his last startup to Google, Jacob Bank now wants to automate mundane tasks with Relay; Microsoft brings DALL-E 2 to the masses with Designer and Image Creator; Indian edtech giant Byju’s cuts 2,500 jobs
Meta announces legs for avatars; Factorial adds $120M and doubles valuation to $1B to build enterprise-quality HR for SMBs; NocoDB takes on Airtable with open source no-code platform that connects to production databases
Google removes The OG App from the Play Store as founders think about next steps; Hulu raises its subscription prices; Endor emerges from stealth with $25M to secure software supply chains
Binance hit by $100 million blockchain bridge hack; Purple Elephant Ventures, Kenya’s tourism-focused startup studio, raises $1 million pre-seed funding; Amazon scales back Scout delivery robot program
Google launched new hardware and tech at its Fall 2022 event; Lightdash takes on Looker with an open source BI platform built for dbt; AI-powered supply chain visibility platform Altana bags $100M
Google picks South Africa for its first cloud region in Africa; Gourmey grabs $48 million to keep working on lab-grown foie gras; Facebook is rolling out new ways to customize what you see in your feed
VLC-developer VideoLAN sends legal notice to Indian ministries over ban; Meet Fizz, the social app downloaded by '95% of Stanford undergrads'; Google begins rolling out its iOS 16 Lock Screen widgets
Hackers leak 500GB trove of data stolen during LAUSD ransomware attack; Kim Kardashian charged by SEC for pushing crypto, reaches $1.26M settlement; Amazon is launching a dedicated hub for its affordable shopping options
Indian market regulator tightens IPO disclosure norms; YouTube TV users can now subscribe to standalone networks without a base plan; Twitter is rolling out a refreshed user interface for DMs on Android
Mark Zuckerberg says Meta will freeze hiring and cut costs; Amazon quietly picked up a cashierless store startup to stock its Amazon Go play in India; Instagram permanently disabled Pornhub’s account
Apple reportedly readjusts iPhone 14 production targets after slow demand; Hacker breaches Fast Company systems to send offensive Apple News notifications; Google’s upcoming Maps feature will let you check out the ‘vibe’ of a neighborhood
NASA’s DART anti-asteroid satellite successfully smashes into space rock; Document onboarding startup Flatfile nabs $50M from investors, including Workday; Calendly, the $3B+ scheduling startup, acquires Prelude to drive into the recruitment sector
Cloudflare launches an eSIM to secure mobile devices; Interpol issues red notice for Terra founder Do Kwon; Vendease, a food procurement platform for African restaurants, nabs $30M
Backed by Epic Games, distributed computing startup Hadean nabs $30M to power the metaverse; A Strava co-founder races into a lucrative market – lending against life insurance; Kenyan startup Ponea gaining momentum in driving access to medical services
Google’s new Chromecast costs $30 — and it has a remote; SoftBank cuts internal valuation of $10 billion Oyo to $2.7 billion; Keith Rabois’ OpenStore bags new funding as valuation soars to $970M
IT services group Wipro fires 300 employees moonlighting for competitors; A ‘Stripe for phone plans’: Gigs raises $20M to help any company be an MVNO; Malwarebytes lands a $100M cash injection weeks after laying off 125 employees
Spotify does audio books; Peloton's rowing machine finally arrives; Amazon dabbles in synthetic fuels
TikTok’s BeReal clone is now available; BeReal considers paid features; Ford eats a billion dollars
Uber investigating cybersecurity incident after hacker breaches its internal network; FTC sets its sights on ‘unfair, deceptive, and anticompetitive practices’ in gig economy; Launch House’s community reacts to misconduct and harassment allegations
An update on Twitter's podcasts plans; Amazon's Kindle gets an update; A new way to make money on Instagram
Patreon confirms security team layoffs; Amazon is buying Cloostermans, a mechatronics specialist in Belgium, to ramp up its robotics operations; Nigerian blockchain payments startup Bitmama closes $2M pre-seed as it scales to new markets
Bloomingdale’s new virtual store; Google's Android upgrade; Instagram's latest repost feature
The president's $50 billion CHIPS Act plan; Samsung's data breach notice; Juul's biggest settlement yet
Nvidia is the latest collateral damage in US-China tech war; Google will allow alternative payment systems for Play Store in more countries; Nigerian digital bank Kuda is the latest African startup to lay off employees
Google prepares for the midterm elections; Slack's new automation feature; Live Nation's plan to clean up the concert business.
Twitter's attempt at adult content; Snap makes staff cuts; NASA orders five more transportation flights from SpaceX
Instagram tests new features; GoPuff pulls out of Spain; Facebook shutting down their gaming app
Zuckerberg says Meta’s next VR headset will launch in October and will focus on ‘social presence’; Twilio says breach also compromised Authy two-factor app users; HBO grows its ‘Game of Thrones’ franchise, gives spin-off ‘House of the Dragon’ a second season
Twitter adding podcasts it's platform; Instagram's new safety features; Google pulls more than 2,000 loan apps
Walmart+'s latest perk; Wordle makes it to the New York Times; Instacart ups their same day delivery game
Ebay buys a trading card company; Netflix explores cloud gaming; Apple's latest fundraising effort
DoorDash is ending its delivery partnership with Walmart; Facebook is losing its grip as a ‘Top 10’ app as BeReal and TikTok grow; Bolt founder Ryan Breslow isn’t going away
Google's new search updates; Celebrity Cameo calls coming soon; Snap's pixy drone flies off off to the sunset
Facebook will disable new political ads; Amazon's TikTok inspired feed test; Major roadblocks in EV adoption
Meta's new Reels features for Instagram and Facebook; Shopify launches "Shopify Collabs"; Wal-mart's big delivery numbers
Samsung heir receives presidential pardon in a bid to 'overcome economic crisis'; Amazon launches AWS Private 5G so companies can build their own 4G mobile networks; Google fined $40M+ for misleading location-tracking settings on Android
Facebook avoids a service shutdown in Europe for now; Google Meet’s new feature lets users consume YouTube and Spotify together; Farther, a wealth tech firm, banks $15M Series A as valuation hits $50M
Spotify starts selling live music tickets to fans directly; Cloud security startup Wiz reaches $100M ARR in just 18 months; Nikola taps its president for CEO post
WhatsApp has new features for security, and deleting old messages; An Armenian startup tackles phishing
Even more bad news for Netflix; Groupon makes staff cuts; Lyft creates a media division
Amazon is buying iRobot for $1.7B; A troubling startup layoff trend has emerged; Get ready for an HBO Max – Discovery+ mashup app in 2023
The latest streaming numbers for Paramount+, HBO Max and more; A CEO's frustration with Meta; The latest in startup business news
Tik-Tok and Ticketmaster Team up; Facebook shutting down its live shopping feature; Coffee themed NFTs coming to Starbucks.
Amazon launches same-day delivery from select retail stores; Use Twitter’s iOS app without signing up for an account in Twitter’s latest test; Pinterest debuts a new app
The passage of the CHIPS Act could launch another US startup renaissance; YouTube’s new tool lets creators turn their own videos into Shorts; iPhone revenue up slightly for Q3, as other hardware categories lose steam
Apple hires Lamborghini executive to help steer EV program; Meta's first ever quarterly revenue decline; Twitter channels it's inner myspace
Meta's headset price hike; Instagram responds to photo criticism; The third generation of Oura rings
Instacart expands its EBT SNAP payments program; Google's new tablet additions; A new way to make money on facebook;
Facebook parent Meta eyes investment in Indian app Better Opinions; Microsoft will block Office macros by default starting July 27; Big Tech cutting back on hiring is an opportunity for startups
Amazon buys a health care provider; Instagram's "Reel" re-arrangement; Snap's Q2 earnings miss the mark
Skullcandy partners with Amazon; Google pauses hiring plans; NASA’s mega moon rocket could see its first launch
Apple agrees to pay $50M to settle lawsuit over flawed keyboards on older MacBooks; Samsung to unveil its latest foldables; Netflix has it's largest quarterly loss ever.
GameStop diversifying its meme money; Instagram's new payment feature; ESPN+'s big price hike
Dissecting Microsoft’s proposed policy to ban commercial open source apps; Medusa’s open source e-commerce tool for JavaScript developers aims to take on Shopify; The New York Times is turning Wordle into a board game
Kids and teens now spend more time watching TikTok than YouTube; Uber sued by 550 women and counting; Nintendo's new acquisition
TikTok to roll out content filters and maturity ratings; Reddit brings GIF comments to the masses; Snap eyes adding NFTs
Walmart gets all electric delivery vehicles; Spotify buys a trivia game; Google's beef with instagram and TikTok
Meta goes after fake news; TikTok targets small businesses; Twitter now lets all users ‘unmention’ themselves in tweets
Butler shows hundreds of employees the door after raising $50M for room service delivery; White House: Tesla to expand its US Supercharger network to other EVs in late 2022; AngelList Venture wants to make cap table management cheaper
Meta’s new VR headset; Twitter begins testing ‘CoTweets’; Amazon bets on influencers for Prime Day
Apple's ‘extreme sports’ Apple Watch; Volkswagen planning ‘big moves'; Amazon faces more antitrust scrutiny
TikTok drops plans to expand its live e-commerce Shop; Twitter sues India's Government; Lawyers seek emergency protection for laid-off Tesla workers
Open source developers urged to ditch GitHub following Copilot launch; Reddit acquires natural language processing company MeaningCloud; FTX US deal with troubled crypto lender BlockFi floats acquisition with ‘up to’ $240M purchase price
NFT giant OpenSea reports major email data breach; The Drako Motors 2,000-hp electric luxury SUV ‘feels more like a spaceship’; As the global venture capital market slows, Africa charts its own course
Amazon’s new physical retail analytics service gives brands insights about product and ad performance; Google and the Internet Archive are the first customers to gain commercial access to Wikipedia content; Tesla lays off nearly 200 Autopilot workers, shutters San Mateo office
Airbnb permanently bans parties on all listings; Spotify’s latest feature lets you imagine a supergroup consisting of your favorite artists; And And Pinterest pins down a new CEO.
Period tracker Stardust surges following Roe reversal, but its privacy claims aren’t airtight; New York-based grand jury issues subpoenas to Truth Social SPAC board members; Google starts prompting remaining Hangouts users to move to Chat
Amazon launches CodeWhisperer, a GitHub Copilot-like AI pair programming tool; Zendesk drama concludes with $10.2 billion private equity acquisition; Leica’s new camera costs $20,000 and has zero megapixels
Spotify's new "community" feature; Meta gets an oversight board review; Layoffs at Netflix continue
Meta to roll out new monetization tools; Twitter's Chirp conference returns; The Obamas are coming to Audible
SpaceX said to have fired employees behind company-wide letter criticizing Elon Musk; Alibaba extends logistics arm to Pakistan for e-commerce unit Daraz; Black founders are seeing a decrease in funding amid economic downturn
Samsung gets on the mobile wallet train; EBay goes live; Instagram's new full screen feed
The rise of YouTube shorts; Amazon Fire TV gets an upgrade; Netflix’s real-life ‘Squid Game’ competition
It’s June 14, 2022, and while we’re casually putting together the Daily Crunch newsletter, Bill Gates is chilling at the next table over at the TC Sessions: Climate event in Berkeley, California. Oh, and we just released some new tickets for our annual summer party! See you there? — Haje and Christine
Doordash rolls out new app features; Amazon drones coming to California; Sony launches its new subscription service
MIT researchers uncover ‘unpatchable’ flaw in Apple M1 chips; Amazon pulls out of IPL cricket streaming rights bidding; Hedge funds plan to buy more crypto amid a down market and potential regulatory clarity
Youtube TV adds surround sound; Spotify hypes the revenue potential of podcasts; Europe warns WhatsApp
Peloton’s new CFO; PayPal's long awaited crypto update; Instagram’s plan to filter sensitive content
Etsy is launching a purchase protection program; Apple announces the M2; The arrest heard ’round the crypto world
Elon Musk orders hiring freeze, warns of job cuts at Tesla in latest leaked email; The delivery market is coming down from its pandemic highs; You may be having a problem with the economy, but Salesforce sure isn’t
Meta’s "Reels" Refesh; Ford keeps focus on electric vehicles; Twitter Communities gets an upgrade
Amber Alerts on Instagram; Discord's voice channel gets an upgrade; The DeLorean returns
Apple’s iOS 16 leak; TikTok secretly creates a new feature; Supreme Court pauses controversial Texas social media law
Indian fintech Jar eyes $50 million investment; Manish Maheshwari, former Twitter India head, leaves new startup; Snapchat rolls out new ‘Shared Stories’ feature to make it easier to share memories
Twitter pays a privacy fine; Google’s antitrust issues in the UK; TikTok makes some new friends
Apple’s latest research suggests the iOS app economy supports 2.2 million US jobs; Amazon flexes its retail muscle with a brick-and-mortar store; The NFL is looking to launch its own streaming service
Bumble’s plan to expand into social networking; Netflix adding four more games this month, including Exploding Kittens; Introducing Twitter Create
SiriusXM acquires Team Coco; Snap misses it’s quarter’s revenue goals; Robots may be coming to a Walmart near you
Terra creator Do Kwon faces prosecution in South Korea; Fears grow for smaller nations after ransomware attack on Costa Rica escalates; As Klarna looks to raise more capital, is it cutting its valuation enough?
WhatsApp ramps up revenue with global launch of Cloud API and soon, a paid tier for its Business App; Netflix continues accessibility push with badges for audio and subtitle descriptions; And Twitter will hide false tweets from high-profile accounts during times of crisis
YouTube’s player gains new features; TikTok gets a creator crediting tool; Apple’s online training courses
Netflix lays off 150 staffers; Youtube Music's new streaming plans; Candle Media goes after the Gen-Z crowd; The latest in startup business news
Uber partners up to launch an autonomous delivery pilot; Sony's revamped PlayStation Plus subscription service; Twitter’s new ‘Liked by Author’ label
Elon Musk says Twitter deal ‘temporarily on hold over spam’; Indian food delivery giant Swiggy is acquiring Dineout for $200 million; Tech employees face another tough week of cross-stage layoffs
Get cashback with the newest Alexa feature; Facebook Pay will be renamed soon; Uber shareholders get closer to passing lobbying disclosure proposal; The latest in startup business news
Airbnb’s huge summer update; Disney+ gains 7.9M more subscribers; A law inviting Texans to sue social media companies over ‘censorship’ returns
Nintendo says it now has more than 100 million annual playing users; Match Group sues Google over ‘monopoly power’ in Android app payments; Twitter’s new policy highlights its efforts to combat spam and duplicative tweets; The latest in startup business news.
Uber shareholders to vote on lobbying disclosure proposal; Instagram to start testing NFTs with select creators this week; TikTok rolls out new ‘Friends’ tab to more users; The latest in startup business news
Post-pandemic reset leads to wave of layoffs in tech; Coinbase’s NFT marketplace is off to a lackluster start; Peloton reportedly looks to sell up to a 20% stake amid struggles
Facebook is shutting down its podcast service; Twitter rolls out new Spaces features; Apple, Google and Microsoft team up on passwordless logins; The latest in startup business news
TikTok introduces its first ad product to offer a revenue share with creators; Robinhood to let users lend out their shares in its attempt to diversify revenue; Starbucks to launch NFTs this year
Snap unveils a Cameo partnership and more original programming; Lyft continues its COVID recovery, investors far from impressed; Roku snags Martha Stewart for its original programming push
Biden to provide $3.1B to support domestic production of EV batteries; What the Edit Tweet feature could look like on Twitter; Apple faces charges over Apple Pay following EU antitrust complaint
Elon Musk has reportedly lined up a new Twitter CEO, shared ideas for monetizing tweets; Robinhood’s sinking value is proof that 'free' can often be very costly; Airbnb commits to fully remote workplace: 'Live and work anywhere'
Peacock added 4 million paid subscribers in Q1; Snapchat’s new ‘Director Mode’ will help anyone become a video creator; Pinterest addresses its first quarter earnings; The latest in startup business news
Rogan backlash didn’t hurt Spotify’s Q1; Robinhood to lay off 9% of full-time employees; WhatsApp follows Google in giving cash-back rewards to win payments users in India
Ford teases a second electric pickup truck; YouTube expands its Super Thanks monetization tool to all eligible creators; TikTok was the top app by worldwide downloads in Q1 2022
Twitter accepts Elon Musk’s $44B acquisition offer; GM reveals first images of the EV Chevy Corvette; Amazon Prime debuts on TikTok; The latest in startup business news
Zenly doesn’t want you to miss another event; Amazon acquires India’s GlowRoad in social commerce push; Tech companies are still going public in Asia, but not enough to halt the global IPO slowdown
AWS expands its serverless offerings; HBO Max and HBO gained 3 million subscribers in Q1 as Netflix reports subscriber decline; Tesla aspires to mass produce robotaxis by 2024
Netflix says it will eventually charge more if you share your account; Google Search now displays city-level air quality; Apple adds Ace Hardware as a new Apple Card cashback partner
Audi designed a private cocoon concept car for China’s megacities; Netflix shares down more than 20% after losing 200,000 subscribers in first quarter; Lyft follows Uber’s lead and removes its mask mandate; The latest in startup business news
Kittens will be exploding all over Netflix; Twitter’s in-development Edit button offers hints as to how the feature could work; Instagram rolls out product tagging feature to US users; The latest in startup business news
Twitter adopts poison pill defense to block Elon Musk takeover; U.S. officials link North Korean Lazarus hackers to $625M Axie Infinity crypto theft; European startups elude global VC funding slowdown in Q1 2022
Tinder adds a ‘Festival Mode’ for making connections ahead of concerts and events; Reddit is rolling out the ability to search comments; Peloton is increasing its subscription fees starting June 1st
WhatsApp permitted to extend payments service to 100 million users in India; A crypto exchange is partnering with an NFL team; TikTok is testing a private dislike button for comments; The latest in startup business news
Spotify brings live audio shows to its main app; Tik Tok launching it’s own AR platform; Twitter acquires mobile engagement platform OpenBack; The latest in startup business news
Over 14,000 Etsy sellers are going on strike; Meta’s Horizon Worlds is testing in-app purchases and creator bonuses; Major space companies pledge to boost diversity and publicly share hard numbers
Better.com CTO steps down, agrees to voluntary separation in wake of mass layoffs; Just how much has late-stage venture capital slowed?; Didi cancels its trip in South Africa
HBO Max begins rolling out an upgraded Apple TV app; Spotify’s ‘Car Thing’ entertainment system gains new features; TikTok delays opening of first European data center again; The latest in startup business news
Intel suspends operations in Russia; Fanatics raises $1.5B at a $27B valuation; Google Play will hide and block downloads for outdated apps; The latest in startup business news
Instacart is coming after users who tricked shoppers out of tips; The Peloton Guide is now available for $295; Substack wants to join the podcast monetization fray
Thousands of rentable Polestar EVs to land on Hertz lots; Roku announces multiyear extension with Amazon for Prime Video and IMDb TV; Alphabet’s Wing is bringing drone delivery to Texas this week; The latest in Startup news
Staten Island Amazon workers vote to unionize; Biden’s answer to high gas prices is to boost U.S. battery production; Late-stage software startups might be in the most valuation trouble
Microsoft goes deeper into process mining; The strike that turned into a potential lawsuit; E3 2022 canceled
Visa launches NFT program as it considers the digital art a new form of e-commerce; Europe lays out expanded ecodesign rules with plan for digital product passports; Spotify expands its music-matching playlist ‘Blend’ to work with up to 10 people, including select artists
Sony unveils revamped PlayStation Plus; Amazon Glow connects family members one story at a time; TikTok, GIPHY partner on video creation tool
Pinterest to invest an additional $1.2 million in its Creator Fund for underrepresented groups; Spotify puts its Podz acquisition to use with test of new podcast discovery feature; TikTok is testing a ‘watch history’ feature to make it easier to uncover lost videos
EU, US come to tentative data deal; Europe says yes to messaging interoperability as it agrees on major new regime for Big Tech; Instacart reduces its valuation
App ecosystem growth continued in Q1; Coinbase pushes further into India; Instacart turns to software; The latest in Startup news
YouTube announces ad-supported TV shows; Microsoft wants you to build your next game in the cloud; Instagram gets down with chronological feeds
Twitter leads call for EU lawmakers to ‘think beyond Big Tech'; New Twitch appeals portal lets users monitor and object to account bans; Microsoft improves its AI translations with Z-Code; The latest in the world of startups
Is the e-commerce business slowing?; ComiXology and the digital revolution in comics; A lawsuit against Grubhub; The latest startup news
Hello and welcome to Daily Crunch for Friday, March 18, 2022! Another week is behind us, which means that it’s time to sit back and read the last tranche of startup and technology news. For those of you building, we just announced that Sequoia’s Jess Lee is coming to Early Stage to chat about landing your first investor, and we’ll have a bevy of VCs at our mobility-themed event that should rock, and, since we’re talking moving about, roll. – Alex
Amazon has closed its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM; Maserati plans to launch a battery-electric version for each model in its portfolio by 2025; says it will begin testing new content tools designed to give advertisers control
The iPad Air is more powerful than ever; Tesla has idled its Shanghai factory due to COVID-19; Meta is now adding parental supervision tools
Intel is planning a huge European investment; Facebook will be paying a token fine for a General Data Protection Regulation breach; Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security is warning against the use of Kaspersky cybersecurity software
Mask unlock is finally live on iPhone; Ford is accelerating plans to sell more electric vehicles in Europe; Instagram is now blocked in Russia
EU to investigate state use of spyware; YouTube is now blocking Russia state-affiliated media globally; Russia says it will block Instagram
Google adds Air Raid Alerts to Android phones in Ukraine; Google suspends Play store billing, YouTube payments in Russia; Chris Dixon, Marc Andreessen back $30M fund exclusively investing in NFT art
Amazon suspends Prime Video in Russia; Developer tools are not worth infinite money; Swiggy preps for huge IPO
Google is acquiring security intelligence firm Mandiant for $5.4B; Instagram warns users who share Russian state media, hides following lists in Russia and Ukraine; Apple TV+ to stream weekly Major League Baseball games in its first live sports deal
Google says Chrome on macOS is now faster than Safari; Apple suspends Search Ads on the Russian App Store ‘until further notice;’ Uber boosts Q1 profit guidance as the world gets moving again
Microsoft halts all new sales in Russia; Disney+ is getting an ad-supported subscription tier later this year; Apple Maps now displays Crimea as part of Ukraine to viewers outside of Russia
Spotify shutters Russia office indefinitely in response to Ukraine invasion; Rivian CEO walks back price hike for any customers who preordered before March 1; SpaceX successfully launches 47 Starlink satellites
Amazon to close 68 physical retail locations, including Amazon Books and 4-star stores; Apple’s next event is March 8
Alphabet’s Wing drones hit 200,000 deliveries as it announces supermarket partnership; Disney+ gains the Marvel series from Netflix and new parental controls; Instagram makes encrypted direct messaging available in Ukraine and Russia
Ukrainians turn to encrypted messengers, offline maps and Twitter amid Russian invasion; Panasonic will start making Tesla’s higher-capacity EV batteries by March 2024; TikTok expands max video length to 10 minutes, up from 3 minutes
Amazon Music to overtake Pandora as No. 2 US music streamer this year; UK wants to squeeze freedom of reach to take on internet trolls; Carvana acquires Adesa US auction business for $2.2B to jump-start used car sales
SEC opens investigation into Elon Musk over possible insider trading; Siri gains a new gender-neutral voice option in latest iOS update; If you give Tumblr $4.99 a month, you won’t have to see ads anymore
Mark Zuckerberg demos a tool for building virtual worlds using voice commands; USPS snubs EVs, Biden with next-gen delivery fleet deal; LinkedIn debuts its own podcast network
To combat chip shortage, Bosch to invest $296M to produce semiconductors; Tesla gets wrist slap from EPA for violating Clean Air Act
Trump’s TRUTH Social launches at the top of the App Store, but no one can get in; Instagram quietly limits ‘daily time limit’ option
Meta axes a head of global community development after he appears on video in underage sex sting; Walmart is expanding autonomous delivery pilot with GM’s Cruise this year
Super Bowl ads boosted crypto app downloads by 279%, led by Coinbase; Elon Musk accuses SEC of conducting a ‘harassment campaign’; Amazon reaches deal to continue accepting Visa payments worldwide
Spotify snaps up podcast measurement and analytics firms Podsights and Chartable; Spyware dealer who sold WhatsApp-hacking tech pleads guilty; New Waymo Via partnership gives it access to 200,000 shippers and carriers
Grubhub expands its ‘Grubhub Goods’ convenience offering nationwide; Twitter launches beta test of anti-abuse tool ‘Safety Mode,’ adds prompts to enable it; Nextdoor revamps with new profiles, feed and more community-building features
Hackers leak names of ‘Freedom Convoy’ donors after GiveSendGo breach; India bans Garena Free Fire, 53 more China-linked apps; Tesla opens entire Supercharger network in the Netherlands to all EVs
Of course, Netflix ordered a movie about the big crypto scandal; Google’s adtech targeted by publisher antitrust complaint in EU; The James Webb Space Telescope takes a selfie and a big step towards its first ‘real’ image
Astra’s first rocket launch from Florida goes awry; California agency sues Tesla for alleged racial discrimination and harassment; Disney+ outshines Netflix with 11.8M new subscribers in Q1 and strong forecast
SpaceX loses 40 Starlink satellites to a geomagnetic storm; Tumblr launches a tip jar feature to help bloggers make a buck; Apple launches its own book club, ‘Strombo’s Lit,’ in the Apple Books app
Peloton CEO steps down as the company cuts 2,800 jobs; Amazon expands its telehealth service nationwide; American Express launches its first all-digital consumer checking account
Spotify will invest $100M in content from underrepresented creators, says CEO Daniel Ek; Bumble makes its first acquisition with deal for French Gen Z dating app, Fruitz; Google sued in Europe for $2.4BN in damages over Shopping antitrust case
Spotify CEO hints HiFi tier delay is related to licensing issues; Meta adds ‘personal boundaries’ to Horizon Worlds and Venues to fight harassment
Facebook isn’t growing anymore; Google Workspace goes all in on shadow IT; Homeland Security establishes the Cyber Safety Review Board to learn the mistakes from past cyber incidents
GitHub introduces sponsor-only repositories; Spotify backlash over Joe Rogan did little to boost its streaming rivals
Apple News launches its first daily local newsletter, targeting Bay Area readers; India proposes 30% tax on crypto and NFTs income; GM’s Chevy Silverado EV already has 110,000 reservations
Spotify, Joe Rogan address COVID-19 content backlash; Pinterest’s AR shopping feature expands to include furniture and home décor; Sony snaps up ‘Halo’ and ‘Destiny’ creator Bungie for $3.6B
Suite users migrate to free Google accounts; Latest Apple OS betas deliver Face ID with a mask and Universal Control
EV battery maker LG Energy Solution becomes South Korea’s second most valuable firm in IPO debut; Messenger upgrades its end-to-end encrypted chat experience; Disney+ is expanding to 42 more countries this summer
Spotify is removing Neil Young’s music after falling out over Joe Rogan; Apple releases iOS 15.3 with fix for ‘actively exploited’ iPhone flaw; Snap upgrades its AR Shopping features with real-time pricing, more product details
Neil Young plans to pull his music from Spotify over Joe Rogan COVID misinformation; Google kills off FLoC, replaces it with Topics; YouTube is considering NFTs, CEO’s letter suggests
Google gets hit with a new lawsuit over ‘deceptive’ location tracking; NBCUniversal is partnering with TikTok for the Winter Olympics; Panasonic’s higher-capacity Tesla battery could enter production in 2023
Intel eyes Ohio for a pair of chip factories amid global shortage; Europe’s top privacy regulator calls for ban on political microtargeting
Peloton reportedly pauses bike and treadmill production amid slowed demand; Twitter Blue subscription users are first to gain access to a new NFT Profile Picture feature; Google reportedly planning a new AR headset for 2024
Instagram launches early test of creator subscriptions in the US; Apple Podcasts introduces new ‘Listen With’ collections to help users discover shows; Netflix’s gaming service adds two more titles on iOS and Android
Apple returns to No. 1 as global smartphone shipments grapple with supply chain concerns; Ford and ADT team up to prevent theft from vehicle; Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion
Ford signs 5-year agreement with Stripe to scale e-commerce; Amazon rows back on threat to stop accepting UK-issued Visa cards
US residents can order free, at-home COVID-19 tests starting on January 19th; House committee investigating Jan. 6 subpoenas Meta, YouTube, Twitter and Reddit
Meta shuts down its experimental video speed-dating service, Sparked; Instacart doubles down on its ready-made meals; Venmo introduces new gift-wrapping feature with eight animated designs
Canalys: Worldwide PC shipments soared in 2021 to 341 million units; Apple releases iOS 15.2.1 to patch iPhones and iPads against HomeKit flaw; Unicorn exits augur poorly as Justworks delays IPO, citing ‘market conditions’
India to own 35.8% in Vodafone Idea after conversion of dues; European parliament found to have broken EU rules on data transfers and cookie consents; IBM looks to sustainability with acquisition of emissions data company Envizi
Apple paid out around $60 billion to App Store developers in 2021; Tesla ‘Full Self-Driving’ beta features an ‘Assertive’ mode with rolling stops; Panasonic says hackers accessed personal data of job candidates
Twitter Spaces continues testing podcast-like features; Apple Fitness+ introduces new ‘Collections’ feature and ‘Time to Run’ series; India hits Google with antitrust investigation over alleged abuse in news aggregation
Reflections on another pandemic CES; The NYTimes is buying The Athletic; Meta has a good VR holiday cycle
Making sense of OpenSea at $13B; Android + Windows; And here’s the other company now worth more than $10B
Kindle’s China future in doubt after disappearing from online shelves; Panasonic to use Redwood’s recycled materials in battery cell production at Tesla gigafactory
Apple’s value touches the $3T mark; Abstra raises $2.3M for no-code apps; Twitter completes MoPub sale
Apple puts Foxconn India plant on probation after protests over food and accommodation conditions; Fiverr rolls out new Pinterest-like personalized discovery feature
More companies bow out of in-person CES presence; Kimberly Bryant’s suspension surfaces ongoing tensions at Black Girls Code; Religious platforms draw investor attention
Remembering the startups we lost in 2021; TC’s fav things; Is accessibility awareness resulting in better accessibility?
After Essential’s failure, OSOM plans a new privacy-first handset; A Bluetooth bug in a popular at-home COVID-19 test could falsify results; Fisher-Price’s Chatter phone has a simple but problematic Bluetooth bug