Author: TechBrunch

Alphabet's X moonshot factory is changing the way it brings ambitious technology projects to market, with projects increasingly being spun out as independent companies rather than staying within Alphabet's corporate structure, X head Astro Teller revealed on TechCrunch Disrupt last week. The strategy relies on a dedicated venture fund that exists solely to invest in the spinout of Company X, with Alphabet being only a minority investor. “If Alphabet were the only LP, the fund would be in Alphabet, and when you invest in something in Company X, it would still be in Alphabet,” Teller explained on stage. “So Alphabet…

The Trump administration has begun directly acquiring stocks in American companies, not as a temporary crisis measure like in 2008, but as a permanent measure of industrial policy. This move raises some interesting questions, including what happens if Whitehouse appears on the cap table. At TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco last week, Sequoia Capital Global Steward Roelof Botha answered just that question, and his response drew knowing laughs from the packed room. “One of the most dangerous words in the world is: 'I'm a government employee and I'm here to help.'” Botha described himself as “essentially a liberal, free-market thinker''…

On Thursday, at the end of Coinbase's third-quarter earnings call, CEO Brian Armstrong admitted he was “a little bit distracted” because he was “following the prediction market of what Coinbase will say on its next earnings call.” “And I would like to add the words Bitcoin, Ethereum, Blockchain, Staking, Web3 here just to make sure you understand before the call ends,” Armstrong added. Why blurt them out without clear context? As Mr. Armstrong hinted, these were the words that Kalsi and Polimarket's Mention Market users were betting would be spoken on the phone. In other words, by speaking, Mr. Armstrong…

This week, the four co-founders of Bending Spoons joined the ranks of billionaires. CEO Luca Ferrari's stake in the Milan-based technology conglomerate is now reportedly worth $1.4 billion, while co-founders Matteo Danieli, Luca Querella and Francesco Patarnello each hold shares worth $1.3 billion, according to Forbes estimates based on shareholder data published by the Italian Business Register. The valuation follows Bending Spoons' latest funding round, which saw $270 million from investors including T. Rowe Price and previous backers Baillie Gifford, Cox Enterprises, Durable Capital Partners and Fidelity, plus $440 million in secondary stake sales from existing shareholders. It is unclear…

On Friday morning, University of Pennsylvania alumni, students, staff, and community members received several emails from a hacker claiming to be from the University's Graduate School of Education (GSE). “We have terrible security practices and are completely meritocratic,” the email said. “We love breaking federal regulations like FERPA (all the data gets leaked).” A partially redacted email sent by a hacker who gained access to the University of Pennsylvania's email system. Image credit: TechCrunch (screenshot) The messages purported to come from various Penn-related email accounts, including GSE, as well as several senior staff members across the university. Other Penn affiliates…

Equity staff is live at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025! On Monday morning, hosts Kirsten Kolosek, Max Zeff, and Anthony Ha took over the Builders Stage and kicked off the event with the question everyone should be asking. “Are we in an AI bubble?” Between a valuation that tripled in a few months, a $300 million seed round, and $100 billion in commitments flying around, money moves fast, maybe too fast. The equity team breaks down what the peak of the bubble looks like, where the business model actually lies (spoiler: many companies are betting on AI data centers), and why some…

US telecommunications giant Ribbon has admitted in an official document that government-backed hackers had access to its network for almost a year before being arrested. The major telecommunications company said in its 10th quarter disclosure document filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last week that in December 2024, “a suspected nation-state actor had access to its IT network.” Ribbon has notified law enforcement and said it believes the hacker is no longer within its network. Headquartered in Texas, Ribbon provides telephone, networking and Internet services to businesses, businesses and critical infrastructure organizations such as energy and transportation systems.…

WhatsApp is adding a new way to access encrypted backups with passkey support. This means that even if you lose your device, you can still access your WhatsApp backup using methods like your fingerprint, face, or screen lock code from your previous device. For years, WhatsApp didn't have an encryption layer for chat backups. However, in 2021, Meta added a way for users to protect their backups with end-to-end encryption using a password or a 64-character encryption key. The problem with both is that you have to remember the backup password or have the encryption key handy when restoring a…

The rise of agent coding tools was a game-changer for software engineers across the industry. But things seemed especially tough for Solana Labs CEO Anatoly Yakovenko. Speaking at TechCrunch Disrupt, Yakovenko said he has become increasingly comfortable putting software development tasks on the back burner. After more than 15 years of software development, Yakovenko says of his experience with agent coding: “Now you can see Claude stirring that thing around, and you can almost smell when it's going off the rails.” “If people are having meetings with me and I'm not paying attention, it's because I'm looking at Claude,” he…

After leaving a small startup and being turned down by every VC firm he applied to, Tim Chen began angel investing and eventually ended up raising his own money. Now, as an individual investor at Essence VC, he just closed his fourth fund with $41 million “without any effort.” Chen's secret weapon? Be technical enough to discuss implementation details with PhD founders while understanding the market dynamics that transform a humble startup into a category leader. Today on TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Julie Bort speaks with Tim Chen to explore the rise of individual VCs and who is rewriting traditional venture…