Author: TechBrunch

The huge episolus of medical billing has informed millions of people across the United States that their personal and health information had been stolen in a cyberattack earlier this year. According to a listing of the US Department of Health and Human Services, the violation has affected more than 5.4 million people, making it one of the biggest healthcare violations to date. Owned by Optum, a subsidiary of Health Insurance Giant UnitedHealth Group, Episource provides billing adjustments to doctors, hospitals, and other organizations working in the healthcare industry. That's why the company processes large amounts of patient personal and medical…

The Trump administration plans to spend $1 billion over the next four years on what is called “offensive cyber operations.” The provisions of one big, beautiful bill, a Trump landmark, have not said what these “offensive cyber operations” are, nor do they say that certain tools and software qualify. The budget focuses on the cost of improving and improving the capacity of the US Pacific Command, which operates in the Asia-Pacific region, including China, the US's biggest geopolitical rival. The move to spend 1 billion on cyber comes as the US faces an ongoing cyber threat from China, as newly…

Google Chrome and Apple's Safari currently dominate the web browser market, and Chrome holds a large share for Tech Giant's ongoing innovation, especially when integrating generated AI into search capabilities. However, users looking for alternatives will find a variety of browsers aimed at challenging these industry giants. To navigate the competitive landscape of browser wars, we've compiled an overview of the top alternative browsers available today. These include browsers that utilize AI, open source browsers that promote customization and privacy, and “mindful browsers.” This is a new term that refers to browsers designed to enhance user well-being. AI-equipped browser Image…

Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok pivoted from anti-Semitism to anime girl Waifus. Musk wrote in an X post on Monday that it was now available on the Grok app for “Super Grok” subscribers, where AI peers pay $30 a month. According to a post shared by Musk, it appears there are at least two available AI companions. Annie is an anime girl wearing a tight corset and a short black dress with thigh-high fish nets and a 3D fox creature Bad Rudy. “This is pretty cool,” Musk wrote, sharing a photo of a blonde goth anime girl. Given this paywall…

Google is turning Notebooklm, a popular AI-powered research and note taking assistant, into more destinations. On Monday, the company announced it will add a series of featured notebooks from a variety of authors, publications, researchers and nonprofits that will allow NoteBookLM users to explore a wide range of topics, from health and life advice to travel tips and financial analysis. The first collection, including notebooks from the works of Economists, Atlantic, and even professors, writers, and even Shakespeare, is designed to provide users with working examples of how to use notebook lums to dig deeper into the subject of interest.…

According to a new report from App Revenue Management Platform Adapty, weekly subscriptions are now one of the most popular ways iOS apps can make money, with these plans contributing 46% to bottom-line profits. The survey, which observed revenue of $1.9 billion across more than 11,000 apps, noted that weekly plans increased 9.5% this year compared to one-off purchases. Other paid plans, including monthly and annual lifetime subscriptions, are immersed in growth. Adapty said prices for the weekly plan are also rising with growth. The average weekly subscription prices for the EU and the US increased to $8.3 and $8.1,…

You voted – they made it to TechCrunch, destroying the 2025 agenda! After reviewing hundreds of outstanding calls to content submissions and opening voting for TechCrunch viewers, it was locked into top five roundtables and top five breakout sessions. Without further ado, we meet extraordinary high-tech voices and sessions they lead, which will shape the conversation in 2025, which will take place from October 27-29th. For more information about the complete session and speaker, visit our Agenda page. Grab your tickets now and save up to $675 before the price goes up. Breakout session winner From vibes to speed: how…

TechCrunch All Stage will officially kick off tomorrow at 7:30am at the Sowa power plant in Boston. This is when ticket prices rise to the full price. This is more than just a founder event. This is a summit built to help startups fund smarter, scale faster and impact leads. Whether you're tightening the pitch, planning a pay raise or navigating the growth of your team, TC All Stage offers tactics and tools to help you take it further. Now, until the door opens tomorrow, the founder's pass is only $100 and the investor's pass is $200. Prices will go…

If that wasn't clear, then no, it's not the real Elmo who posted racist or antisensitivity posts on Elon Musk's X. Someone hacked into the X account of a character on Sesame Street. On Sunday, Elmo's official account published several abusive posts since it was removed. It is not clear how the account was breached, but the non-profit Sesame Workshop said it was “working to restore full control of the account.” The account also called on the Trump administration to release files related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation that President Trump had tried to underestimate. At the time of writing,…

After the platform announced in late May that it would experiment with a new virtual reward system, Discord is now launching it to the public. The purpose of rewards, known as Orbs, is to make people click on more interactive ads. Users earn orbs after completing the quest. This includes interacting with product or game ads to retrieve virtual items. Users can redeem orbs of digital items from Discord's Shop, including 3 days of Nitro credits, ORB-themed profile badges, profile effects, and avatar decorations. According to Discord, Orbs is popular among testers, spending millions of betas earning and spending it…