Author: TechBrunch

Startups developing voice AI technology and applications are at their moment. Model builders such as Eleven Love and Cartecia have raised millions of dollars in recent months. Applications such as the AI-powered Note Taker Granola, Meeting Tools Read AI and Fireflies AI are also receiving investor attention and support. Continuing the trend, Dictation App Wispr Flow announced today that it has raised $30 million in Series A funding from Menlo Ventures with participation from NEA, 8VC, OPAL CEO Kenneth Schlenker, Pinterest founder Evan Sharp, Carta CEO Henry Ward and Lindy Ceo Flo Crivelli. Matt Clanning, a Menloventure who also supported…

Perfect your pitch for maximum impact. Investors hear hundreds of pitches, but only a few stand out. In TechCrunch's 2025 confusion, we hear directly from Medha Agarwal, general partner at Defy.vc. Jyoti Bansal, CEO and co-founder of Harness. Jennifer Neundorfer is a co-founder and managing partner, and the founder of the January venture, which has been turning off what's been attracting attention, what's been turning off and subtle signals. This candid panel will help you uncover your insider strategy, build trust, gain prominent and appropriate checks. For such an impactful discussion, join over 10,000 startups, tech and VC leaders from…

At every stage of TechCrunch, we are proud to shine a spotlight on our partners not only for their support, but also for the valuable expertise they bring to the conversation. Their sessions provide frontline insight into the startup ecosystem, and are a must-have moment for anyone looking to navigate and thrive today's dynamic entrepreneurial landscape. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Fidelity for supporting TC All Stage programming this year. Their commitment to the success of startups helps to promote knowledge, inspiration and actionable insights seen on stage and beyond. Below is some content from TC…

Google announced Tuesday that it will be able to access historic street view images on Google Earth. Until now, Google Maps has only been able to access historic street view images. Google says the launch will allow you to explore from more perspectives, whether it's a bird's-eye view or on a street level. Google is introducing an update to celebrate Google Earth's 20th birthday. Last year, there was a trend in social media, so the release will occur. This allowed people to visit Google Maps to effectively visit time travel, finding their loved ones in images, or see how the…

The US government has banned WhatsApp from devices used by U.S. House staff, and the app poses a potential security risk, Reuters reported citing a note sent to house staff. “The Cybersecurity office viewed WhatsApp as a high risk for users due to its way of protecting user data, lack of data encryption at rest, and lack of transparency in how it protects the potential security risks associated with its use,” Reuters reported. Instead, the memo recommends that staff use apps such as Signal, iMessage, FaceTime, and Microsoft Teams. In January, Meta said it detected and confused a hacking campaign…

Andy Konwinski, a computer scientist and co-founder of Databricks and Perplexity, announced Monday that his personal company, Laude, is establishing a new AI lab that supports his $100 million dollar pledge. The Laude Institute appears to be not an AI lab, but a fund that is trying to form an investment just like grants. In addition to Konwinski, the institute's board includes Professor Dave Patterson, Professor UC Berkeley (known for his award-winning series of research), Jeff Dean (known as Google's Chief Scientist), and Joelle Pineau (vice president of AI Research, Meta). Konwinski announces the institute's first “flagship” grant, which costs…

With the Monday release of iOS 26 Beta 2, Apple fixed one of the more obvious issues with Liquid Glass, a divisive new user interface design for iPhones, iPads and other Apple devices. This was announced at WWDC 2025 earlier this month. The updated user interface modernizes the look and feel of the operating system with design systems inspired by the optical quality of the glass, including methods of refraction of light and its semi-transparent nature. However, the early iOS 26 testers quickly pointed out the flaws in the updated appearance of the early developer beta, somewhat unfair. The beta…

The Canadian government and the FBI say they know about malicious activities targeting telecommunications companies across Canada. This attributes to the invasion of the Salt era, a Chinese-backed hacking group. In a joint recommendation late Friday, the federal government said at least one unnamed Canadian carrier was hacked in mid-February this year, and hackers operated three Cisco routers to allow stealth traffic collections from the network. The federal government says separate investigations suggest that salt typhoon targeting is “wideer than the communications sector.” Active since at least late 2024, Salt Timson previously targeted US phone giants and internet providers, and…

Harvey AI, a startup that provides automation for legal work, raised $300 million in Series E funding at a $5 billion valuation, the company told Fortune. The round was co-led by Kleiner Perkins and Coatue, and received participation from existing investors such as convictions, Elad Gil, Openai Startup Fund and Sequoia. The funding comes just four months after Harvey announced that Sequoia led the $300 million Series D round at a $3 billion valuation. While many AI companies aim to keep their staff low, Harvey is rapidly expanding its staff. The startup three years ago already employs 340 people and…

Startups don't build themselves. TechCrunch's builder stage will disrupt 2025, which will take place at Moscone West in San Francisco from October 27-29. Investors, operators and founders will start talking about tactics. This year we will bring some of the keenest minds of the game onto the stage. These include legendary investor Elad Gil, former Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, and Flexport founder Ryan Petersen. If you're looking for real-world insights from people who have actually built and supported the companies that define categories, this is where it happens. If you're struggling with your first term seat, whether you're wondering whether…