Author: TechBrunch

What is the secret to startup success? VC Martin Casado, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, told a standing-room-only crowd at TechCrunch Disrupt last week that this is a departure from the trend supported by many Silicon Valley founders. Before joining the prestigious venture capital firm, Mr. Casado founded two companies, including network infrastructure company Nicira, which he sold to VMware for $1.25 billion. When asked for advice on achieving success, he cautioned founders to be wary of trends in “hustle culture.” “Silicon Valley is very high performing, right? There's a lot of 'doing a startup' and doing the 'right…

Founders want their startups to continually raise larger funding rounds while increasing their valuations. However, unforeseen challenges such as a global health crisis or soaring interest rates can significantly impact a company's ability to maintain its valuation. Some of these startups may have to resort to down rounds, which are new financings at a lower valuation than the company's previous price. Contrary to popular belief, these deals don't necessarily have a devastating impact on a startup's future, although founders and investors generally try hard to avoid down rounds. . “When we founded the company in 2021, our first investment was…

Lilian Wen, another of OpenAI's chief safety researchers, announced Friday that she is leaving the company. Wen has been vice president of research and safety since August, and previously served as head of OpenAI's safety systems team. In a post on X, Wen said, “After 7 years at OpenAI, I feel ready to reset and explore something new.” Wen said Nov. 15 would be his last day, but did not say where he would go next. “I have made the very difficult decision to leave OpenAI,” Wen said in the post. “Given what we have accomplished to date, I am…

Cybersecurity continues to receive significant attention from businesses seeking better protection from malicious hackers, and venture capital firms want to join in the effort. In the latest example, cloud infrastructure valuation and security specialist Upwind is approaching a $100 million round at a post-money valuation between $850 million and $900 million, TechCrunch reported. has learned and confirmed. The round includes a mix of new and existing investors, including Craft Ventures, Greylock, CyberStarts, Leaders Fund, Omri Casspi's Sheva Fund, and basketball star Steph Curry's investment fund Penny Jar. There is. This round is in the final stages of completion and could…

Now that the election is over, the autopsy can begin. Even the approximate numbers are interesting to consider, as this is the first election in which AI chatbots played a significant role in voters' information diet. For example, OpenAI says it has directed ChatGPT's roughly 2 million users to look elsewhere. It not only gave them the cold shoulder, but recommended reliable news sources such as Reuters and the Associated Press. ChatGPT responded with this type of “I'm just an AI, please read the real news” response more than 2 million times on Election Day, and the next day, OpenAI…

There is no shortage of AI-powered coding assistance startups. These include Augment, Codeium, Magic, and Poolside. However, Cursor has become one of the most popular. Its developer, Anysphere, saw its revenue rise from $4 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) in April to $4 million a month as of last month, according to a person with direct knowledge of the company's finances. Another person said the company has seen faster user adoption and growth compared to other coding assistant providers. VCs are flocking to such rapid growth. AnySphere reportedly received unsolicited offers from Benchmark, Index Ventures, and former investors Andreessen…

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 emails seen by TechCrunch. Horowitz then sent money to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s (LVMPD) police foundation to purchase Skydio drones for the department.  It was a win-win, seemingly. Skydio was able to tout its relationship with the LVMPD, while the department received a…

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 emails seen by TechCrunch. Horowitz then sent money to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s (LVMPD) police foundation to purchase Skydio drones for the department.  It was a win-win, seemingly. Skydio was able to tout its relationship with the LVMPD, while the department received a…

Monarch Tractor is laying off about 10% of its workforce as part of a reorganization, prioritizing non-farm customers, licensing self-driving technology and offering AI-powered farm management software, according to TechCrunch. The company plans to expand its sales. The Livermore, Calif.-based self-driving electric tractor startup, which has raised a total of $220 million since its founding in 2018, cut about 35 employees this week. Some Monarch employees told TechCrunch they were fired without severance pay. This is my second cut this year. Monarch previously laid off about 15% of its workforce in July. CEO Praveen Penmetsa said in an interview with…

Welcome to Startups Weekly — a weekly roundup of must-sees from the world of startups. Want it delivered to your inbox every Friday? Sign up here! This week probably wasn't the best week to make any kind of big announcement. But when it comes to startups, there are quite a few contrarian companies out there, and despite the US election news cycle, there are still some interesting stories to cover. This week's most interesting startup stories Image credit: Kimberly White/Getty Images for TechCrunch This week we'll be covering some election news and other news, including mergers and acquisitions and closures.…