Author: TechBrunch

Did OpenAI really ask investors not to back rivals like Anthropic and xAI? That's what hosts Devin Coldewey, Margaux MacColl, and special guest Anthony Ha wanted to know on today's episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast. The team kicked off the show by reviewing OpenAI's $6.6 billion round, dubbed the “largest VC round in history.” Following the announcement, Devin elaborated on what this funding means for the company's path to profitability, especially given how unusual such investor restrictions are for late-stage funding. Some of the rumors floating around were debunked. OpenAI wasn't the only thing the Equity team was thinking about…

In today's software ecosystem, open source code is the backbone of innovation and digital infrastructure, playing a critical role in everything from startups to large enterprises. The collaborative nature of open source software unlocks incredible potential for businesses, enabling rapid development and agility. However, this openness comes with the serious dilemma of security vulnerabilities. As national-level actors target open source projects, the international community must face a balance between innovation and protection. Join TechCrunch Disrupt 2024 as Bogomil Balkansky, Partner at Sequoia Capital. Aeva Black, director of open source security at the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Luis…

The Startup Battlefield 200 is a big highlight of every Disrupt, and we can't wait to see which of the thousands of startup applicants will get the chance to pitch to top VCs at TechCrunch Disrupt 2024. Join Moscone West in San Francisco. It will be held from October 28th to 30th and will witness an epic showdown where all the candidates will have a huge impact. Auditors provide detailed feedback on their evaluation criteria, giving you an insider's perspective on what they look for in a viable company. Don't miss your chance to learn from their expert insights and…

TikTok, owned by ByteDance, will lay off hundreds of employees, mainly in Malaysia, according to Reuters. The cuts come as social networks increasingly rely on AI for content moderation. TikTok did not reveal the exact number, but said less than 500 people were affected. The company said it made the change as part of its efforts to strengthen its global operating model for content moderation, according to Reuters. TikTok currently uses both automatic detection and human moderators to vet content shared on the social network. TikTok did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment. The latest cuts at the social…

Thanks to the rise of large-scale language models (LLMs) like OpenAI's GPT, AI-generated slop is taking over the realm of user-generated internet, but think about Wikipedia editors for a moment . In addition to the normal job of removing bad human edits, an increased percentage of our time is spent removing AI filler. 404 Media spoke to crowdsourced encyclopedia editor Ilyas Lebleu, who helped found the WikiProject AI Cleanup project. The group is trying to devise best practices for detecting machine-generated contributions. (And before you ask, AI won't help with this.) In this context, a particular problem with AI-generated content…

When Nick Spreen installed the iOS 18.1 beta to try out upcoming Apple Intelligence features, he probably didn't expect to receive a summary of an AI-generated breakup message from his then-girlfriend. “We don't care anymore. I want what's in the apartment,” the AI ​​summarized. After sharing a screenshot of the unfortunate message on X, Ars Technica contacted Spreen to confirm its authenticity. Check out that article for more information on digital catastrophe. Many Apple Intelligence features are designed to improve your productivity and filter out the signal from the noise. For example, text summarization is useful in a group conversation…

Monzo is now valued at $5.9 billion after the UK-based challenger bank confirmed a secondary market share sale to provide liquidity to its employees. The deal was first rumored yesterday, with existing investors including Singapore's sovereign wealth fund (GIC) and Stepstone Group raising additional stake in the London-based fintech company. A secondary market sale essentially rewards the employees who helped the company get to its current position without going public, or at least buying time. It's been an action-packed year for Monzo. The company raised $190 million in May, just two months after launching a $425 million Series I round…

Arne Schepker, CEO of the popular Berlin-based language learning platform Babbel, has stepped down, with the company's co-founder and former CEO Markus Witte saying, “While we search for Arne's successor, He will return to lead the company to this stage. Please be patient,” the company said. This new phase naturally involves AI. Mr. Witte will not assume the CEO role for the time being, but will instead serve as executive chairman and managing director. Schepker told me that after serving almost exactly five years as sole CEO and several months ago taking over as co-CEO with Witte, who previously held…

Arne Schepker, CEO of the popular Berlin-based language learning platform Babbel, has stepped down, with the company's co-founder and former CEO Markus Witte saying, “While we search for Arne's successor, He will return to lead the company to this stage. Please be patient,” the company said. This new phase naturally involves AI. Mr. Witte will not assume the CEO role for the time being, but will instead serve as executive chairman and managing director. Schepker told me that after serving almost exactly five years as sole CEO and several months ago taking over as co-CEO with Witte, who previously held…

Following the criminal blow-up of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, many of the company's executives were found guilty of various crimes, including fraud and conspiracy to commit such acts. Ryan Salame, former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, begins a 7.5-year sentence for fraud today, but before he does so, he posted one of the most ridiculous LinkedIn posts of all time. (And I've seen some wild posts lately). Image credit: Ryan Salame on LinkedIn “I am excited to announce that I am accepting a new position as an inmate at FCI Cumberland!” Salameh wrote on LinkedIn. Below the boilerplate text is a…