Author: TechBrunch

Tiger Global, the investor that fueled the 2020-2021 VC bull market, is reportedly raising $2.2 billion in new funding. The company sent a letter to potential limited partners seeking financing for an entity called Private Investment Partners 17 (PIP 17), according to a copy obtained by CNBC. The letter also promises a more humble approach than during the crazy bull market of 2021. Meanwhile, Tiger Global moved quickly and made deep investments, a technique known in the venture world as “spray and pray.” As reported by TechCrunch, PIP 15 raised in 2021 was a whopping $12.7 billion in funding that…

Pet supplies and services giant Petco acknowledged last week that it had suffered a data breach involving customers' personal information, but did not say what type of data was affected. Petco reported Friday in a legal filing with the Texas Attorney General's Office that the affected data includes names, social security numbers, driver's license numbers, financial information such as account numbers, credit or debit card numbers, and dates of birth. Petco filed similar legally required notices in California, Massachusetts, and Montana. In the latter two states, Petco reported one and three residents affected, respectively. The company did not disclose the…

After more than two years of hiatus, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has launched its app for registration in India. For now, users can trade between cryptocurrencies, but speaking at India Blockchain Week (IBW), Coinbase APAC Director John O'Loren said the company will open a fiat onramp in 2026, allowing users in India to top up with money and buy cryptocurrencies. Coinbase launched in India in 2022, but had to stop supporting the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) payment network within days. The move comes after UPI operator National Payments Corporation (NPCI) refused to acknowledge Coinbase's presence in the country. In late 2023,…

Aaru, a startup that uses AI to provide near-instantaneous customer research by simulating user behavior, has raised a Series A led by Redpoint Ventures, according to three people familiar with the deal. The funding round included various evaluation stages, the people said. Some of the shares were acquired at a valuation of $1 billion, but lower valuations from other investors brought the overall valuation below $1 billion, according to people familiar with the deal. While multiple valuations within the same round are rare in venture capital, investors say it's becoming increasingly common for desirable AI startups in the current market.…

Pet products and services giant Petco disclosed the data breach Wednesday in a filing with the California attorney general's office, which the company claims involved customers' personal information. The state released a sample notification letter that Petco would send to customers affected by the breach. Petco said in the letter that it had identified “a setting in one of our software applications that incorrectly allowed access to certain files online,” adding that the company independently discovered the issue and “immediately took steps to correct the issue and remove the file from future online access.” However, the letter does not specify…

Micro1's rapid growth over the past two years has placed it among the fastest-scaling AI companies. The three-year-old startup, which helps AI labs recruit and manage human experts to train data, started the year with approximately $7 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR). The company's ARR currently exceeds $100 million, founder and CEO Ali Ansari told TechCrunch. This number is also more than double the revenue Micro1 reported in September, when it announced a $35 million Series A at a valuation of $500 million. Ansari, 24, said Micro1 works with major AI labs, including Microsoft, as well as Fortune 100…

Harvey confirmed on Thursday that it had closed a funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz that valued the legal AI startup at $8 billion, following reports that the funds were leaked in October. The startup has raised $160 million in a round. This latest capital infusion comes just months after the company raised $300 million in a Series E round at a $5 billion valuation in June. And that comes just months after it raised a Series D led by Sequoia at a $3 billion valuation in February. Harvey's investors include EQT, WndrCo, Sequoia, Kleiner Perkins, Sarah Guo's Conviction and…

Spyware maker Intellexa had remote access to some of its government customers' surveillance systems, allowing its employees to view the personal data of people whose phones had been hacked with its Predator spyware, according to new evidence released by Amnesty International. On Thursday, Amnesty International and a coalition of media partners, including Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Greek news site Inside Story, and Swiss news agency Inside IT, released a series of reports based on leaked material from Intellexa, including internal documents, sales and marketing materials, and training videos. Perhaps the most shocking revelation is that people working at Intellexa allegedly had…

Masha Bucher worked in PR and marketing before becoming a VC. That experience shaped how she operates Day One Ventures. After years of working in the communications field, including a management position that gave him deep insight into how startups operate, Butcher realized he could use his business acumen to evolve into one of the most effective PR people in the industry, if not more. “I was looking at what was going on in the business, and I could understand the context, so I understood the business, and because I understood the business, my PR pitch would be very business-focused,”…

While many venture firms seem to be focused solely on AI these days, Nexus Venture Partners is intentionally splitting its focus for its new $700 million fund. The company will support AI startups and look for India-focused startups in the consumer, fintech and digital infrastructure sectors. AI has absorbed most of the venture capital raised globally, and the 20-year-old venture capital firm also sees it as a defining technological change. But they argue that focusing on a single overheated category comes with its own risks. India's digital economy offers a balance with an expanding market where AI adoption is on…