Author: TechBrunch

Considering Instagram revealed this week that it's working on a “friend map” feature, it was interesting and timely to come across a startup during Mobile World Congress that plans to go even further than that. Swayy is her iPhone app startup that allows you to share your information. the current location, but your Next appointment location. It could be hours, weeks, or even months away. So why on earth would anyone want to do that? The advantage, as founder Dene Westrop told me, is that “you don't have to constantly coordinate with friends via text or phone calls, and the…

Apple has reversed its decision to block web apps, also known as progressive web apps (PWAs), on iPhones in the European Union. The company has updated its developer page to say that after receiving numerous requests for support for PWAs, it will be bringing back the feature in the upcoming iOS 17.4. PWAs behave like native apps and give you access to a variety of features on your device without taking up much space on your phone. These apps can also send you notifications and keep you logged in to the service. As first pointed out by security researcher Tommy…

CommandBar, a B2B tool designed to make software easier to use, closed $4.8 million in funding in 2021 with one of the boldest minimalist decks I've ever seen. The deck only has seven slides and is missing a ton of really important information, but that didn't stop Thrive Capital and Y Combinator from opening their checkbooks. We're looking for more unique proposal decks, so if you'd like to submit your own, you can do so in the following ways: This deck slide cover slide product slide Demo slides (with link to Loom demo) paper slides Problem/Conflict Situation Slide value proposition…

The U.S. National Security Agency has confirmed that hackers exploiting a flaw in Ivanti's widely used enterprise VPN appliance targeted organizations across the U.S. defense sector. NSA spokesman Edward Bennett said in an emailed statement to TechCrunch on Friday that the U.S. intelligence community, along with interagency intelligence agencies, is “tracking the broader impact of the recent misuse of Ivanti products. I am aware of it,” he admitted. [sic] Department of Defense of the United States. ” ” [NSA’s] “The Cybersecurity Collaboration Center continues to work with our partners to detect and mitigate this activity,” the spokesperson added. Confirmation that…

Travel-focused startups that could have been wiped out by the coronavirus pandemic have instead flourished. TravelJoy, a company that provides a suite of tools to travel entrepreneurs and travel operators, now has customers spending more than $1 billion annually as interest in travel revived in the U.S. in the months following the pandemic. exceeds. The company is now turning to AI to power the next phase of growth for its business. For co-founder and CEO Dayo Esho, the idea for TravelJoy came from growing up in the travel industry and supporting his mother's travel agency business. “I knew there was…

Everbridge, a critical event management (CEM) software company, will be taken private and acquired by private equity giant Thoma Bravo in a $1.8 billion all-cash deal. This is 20% more than the amount originally announced last month.* Founded in 2002 as 3N Global, Everbridge helps governments and businesses across all industries respond to emergencies. This includes risk intelligence to help assess the threat landscape where employees live and travel, and mass notification tools to communicate effectively. Important messages during bad weather or terrorist attacks. Everbridge listed on the Nasdaq in 2016, and the stock hit an all-time high in September…

Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts. Hello. Welcome to Equity, the startup business podcast. Uncover the numbers and nuances behind the headlines. This is a Friday episode that delves into the week's most important stories and themes. Here's what Mary Ann and Alex thought: Stripe's reputation will recover. As part of the tender offer, Stripe is now valued at $65 billion. The company's valuation has waxed and waned in recent years as the company works to adapt large companies to private markets. As you can imagine, Alex has ideas about when to publish. Fervo Energy’s $200+ million round:…

Just as important is the The ocean affects countless industries, but we lack the systematic knowledge we have about land. Syrenna has built a versatile robotic platform that appears to be a mobile weather observatory at sea, ready to emerge from stealth to enable precise real-time monitoring of Earth's largest liquid assets. You might be surprised at how little we know about the ocean.certainly we know a lot general, trends and patterns across seasons and decades. But when it comes to that, detailwe have no idea what the temperature, salinity, or microplastic count is now two miles off the coast…

Parks and recreation organizations help communities thrive. However, many use outdated systems that can make program registration stressful for residents and result in lost revenue for cities. Rec, a new startup aiming to improve the local recreational experience, launched in stealth today. The platform's services cater to four groups: residents, community organizers, coaches, and city officials. Residents can find available slots, book lessons, and learn about upcoming events in their area. Instructors can choose to run either group clinics or private classes. Meanwhile, the Parks & Rec department will have access to reservations, employee management, and marketing tools. In the…

After adding 15 hours of free audiobooks to its subscription plans late last year, Spotify today introduced a $9.99 per month option that gives free users access to the audiobook collection as well. The company announced a new “Audiobook Access Tier” on Friday. Similar to the service offered to subscribers, this will give US customers access to 15 hours of streaming playback from his catalog of over 200,000 titles. This will allow free Spotify users to continue streaming music and podcasts through the ad-supported service, but they will now pay to listen to audiobooks without purchasing a Spotify subscription. Spotify…