Author: TechBrunch

Red Hat, the IBM-owned open source software company, is acquiring Neural Magic, a startup that optimizes AI algorithms to run on general-purpose processors. The transaction is subject to applicable regulatory reviews and other customary closing conditions. Terms were not disclosed. MIT research scientist Alex Matveyev and professor Nir Shavit founded Somerville, Massachusetts-based Neural Magic in 2018, inspired by their research into high-performance execution engines for AI. Neural Magic's software aims to process AI workloads on processors at speeds comparable to dedicated chips. The company's software can achieve speedups by running AI models through off-the-shelf processors, which typically have more available…

Enterprise spending on cloud services continues to grow, reaching $675 billion this year, thanks to organizations' embrace of software-as-a-service, the proliferation of distributed work, and the rise of computing. Intensive technologies like AI. A startup called PointFive believes it has found a better way to understand usage, and today announced $20 million in funding from a strong list of backers to take on the market. New backer Salesforce Ventures is leading the Series A, with participation from Index Ventures, Entree Capital, Sheva VC, and Vesey Ventures. The company, headquartered in New York, was founded out of the Israeli tech industry…

Global food production generates at least a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions, more than 80% of which comes from agriculture. But managing that impact is easier said than done because there are so many variables to deal with. 'Regenerative' agriculture is being hailed as one way to move towards several sustainability goals, as it offers farmers the opportunity to increase biodiversity and enrich soil while reducing carbon emissions. Well advertised. It has a direct impact on food production and thus the food supply. Berlin-based agritech startup Klim is working to make it easier for farms to switch to regenerative agriculture,…

It was 2020, and Nicolas Orban, Stéphane Derosiaux, and Stéphane Maarek were all too unhappy with Apache Kafka. Tools to process real-time data streams simply weren't up to the task of meeting the trio's engineering needs, especially during the pandemic as companies rushed to deploy cloud services. “Many companies found it difficult to scale their data operations,” Orbán told TechCrunch. “And they struggle to leverage the full potential of their data, leaving vast amounts unused or siled.” After some discussion, Orbán, Derochaux, and Malek concluded that, although unwieldy, Kafka was not a total waste. They thought that maybe some tools…

Privacy-focused messaging app Signal is adding new features for video calls, including links, reactions, and call tabs, as it aims to serve as an alternative to Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams. The highlight of the update is the new Calls tab, where you can make new calls, manage call links, and review your call history. Image credit: Signal This tab allows you to create links for calls, so instead of creating a group, you can simply share the link with others, similar to what Meet, Zoom, and Teams do. Links are reusable, so you can also use them for…

Vintage clothing has exploded as a category over the past few decades. A London start-up that has built a first-of-its-kind platform to improve the way this highly fragmented industry operates has announced funding to double down on this opportunity. Fleek, an online marketplace that connects used clothing wholesalers and retailers, has raised $20.4 million ($14.8 million in Series A and $5.6 million in seed, first announced today) to continue expanding its platform. Fleek says it has worked with around 10,000 resellers and retailers in 70 countries and moved 2.5 million pieces of used clothing from 1,000 wholesalers. This investment comes…

SoftBank has announced that Vision Fund co-CEO Rajeev Misra will soon step down from his leadership role at the company's flagship technology investment vehicle, leaving one of the Japanese group's most prominent dealmakers behind. He announced that he was retiring. The company announced on Tuesday that Misra, who helped guide the $100 billion Vision Fund through both its explosive rise and ensuing difficulties, will step down as co-head of SoftBank Investment Advisors and SoftBank Global Advisors. announced that he would resign. Alex Clavel will assume sole leadership as CEO of both divisions. The move comes after Misra stepped down from…

On average, Agicap customers manage 15 different bank accounts each. As a result, chief financial officers (CFOs) working at these companies need to make sure they have enough funds in the right bank accounts to pay their employees and suppliers across various subsidiaries, countries, and currencies. You may have a hard time. This is also why we look to Agicap to centralize cash-related data and predict future cash positions. The Lyon-based startup received a series C funding round of €45 million (approximately €4,800 at current exchange rates) from a single investor, AVP, the VC firm formerly known as Axa Venture…

Tozero, a Munich-based startup that recovers valuable raw materials from recycled lithium-ion batteries, is preparing to scale up. The startup just closed an oversubscribed seed round of €11 million (approximately $11.7 million) to build its first industrial deployment (also known as first-of-its-kind or FOAK) plant and ramp up production. Currently, Tozero's pilot plant processes 9 tons of lithium-ion battery waste per day, but the startup is aiming for unlimited production capacity with the hope of expanding its operations in the next few years. . “Other competitors are raising even more money to get to their factories. But our processes and…

Qwant, France’s privacy-focused search engine, and Ecosia, a Berlin-based not-for-profit search engine that uses ad revenue to fund tree planting and other climate-focused initiatives, are joining forces on a joint venture to develop their own European search index. The pair hopes this move will help drive innovation in their respective search engines — including and especially around generative AI — as well as reducing dependence on search indexes provided by tech giants Microsoft (Bing) and Google. Both currently rely on Bing’s search APIs while Ecosia also uses Google’s search results. Rising API costs are one clear motivator for the move…