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I just recorded an episode of Equity where I learned about the latest wave of stupidity. The tech industry's DEI allergy has hit a new low as Silicon Valley leaders once again wave the “meritocracy” flag high and wide. Scale AI's Alexandr Wang has decided that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is outdated and instead introduced a shiny new acronym: MEI (Merit, Excellence, Intelligence). I'm so shaken up, I might need to see a chiropractor.
I want to tell him and those who support him to totally disappear. You misunderstood what I said. You thought I was only telling you to partially disappear. Please read my lips. I said it perfectly clear. Get out, totally. Get your head off your ignorant ass and totally disappear.
Of course, this ignorance was met with rapturous applause from tech titans like Elon Musk of X, but had the LinkedIn startups all but doing backflips in astonishment.
Critics argue that Wang's post misses the mark (rightly so!) by ignoring institutional barriers and reducing complex social dynamics to a simple and dangerously naive ideal of meritocracy. Meanwhile, at Scale AI's headquarters, annotators from economically depressed regions toil away for salaries that would cost them a decent brunch in Silicon Valley. But of course, let's talk about how “objective” hiring practices save us all from the tyranny of fairness and inclusion.
<演説台から降りて、次々と吐き出される罵り言葉の箱を片付ける。>
Sincerely,
Haje
(@Haje on X. Please don't message me with your thoughts on the above. Also, the thoughts above are my own and do not necessarily reflect the position of TechCrunch or any other writer, nor the usual “whatever” people say when writing infuriated op-eds.)
This week's most interesting startup stories
Image courtesy of the University of Tokyo
Have you ever wondered what keeps top venture capitalists up at night? Spoiler alert: it's not a big investment portfolio or a packed schedule. Vinod Khosla, co-founder of Sun Microsystems and the man behind Khosla Ventures, recently confessed his biggest worries. And they're not what you'd expect from a guy who just invested $50 million in OpenAI and made it big time. Kony's candid chat with Khosla about the future of AI, regulatory woes, and why the European tech industry is snoozing while the rest of the world is racing ahead is fascinating. So buckle up and let's get ready for an enlightening (and surprisingly entertaining) journey!
Lotion goes in the basket: To turn your pleasant dreams into vivid nightmares, scientists have developed a robot with real, living skin that can stretch and manipulate. Imagine the Terminator T-1000, but with a slightly better skincare routine. In a recent interview that raised more eyebrows than a Botox flop, Telegram founder Pavel Durov revealed that the messaging giant runs on “about 30 engineers” and has no dedicated product manager — except for Durov himself. While he boasts about its efficiency from his Dubai hideout, security experts all covered their faces and said this is a big red flag for user safety. Hey, Butch, you bought your return ticket, right?: Boeing's Starliner capsule has finally reached space, but the return is behind the curve. Originally scheduled to return on June 14, the two crew members ended up extending their space leave until June 26 due to deep-rooted technical issues.
Most interesting fundraising this week
Image credit: Rivian
Volkswagen is looking to make a big leap (and cash) into the electric future by investing up to $5 billion in Rivian software development, starting with an initial $1 billion capital infusion. The deal seems like a win-win for both parties: Rivian gets the financial boost it needs to continue on its ambitious path, and Volkswagen finally gets a chance to hone its somewhat rusty software skills. In this new friendship, the two auto giants will share tech secrets like school kids swapping lunch snacks. Volkswagen will even get access to Rivian's sophisticated electric architecture. The partnership could inject some much-needed oomph into Volkswagen's lineup and give Rivian a European feel. The deal kind of started with the two companies' love affair with building cars in Georgia (the state, not the country).
Imagine sitting in a venture capital firm's office negotiating for $500,000 instead of spending your summers smoking weed behind a bike shed (or whatever the hell kids are doing these days). Sound like something from a teen drama? But for Christopher Fitzgerald and Nicholas Van Landshoot, this is reality. Instead of perfecting their cannon fire or binge-watching Netflix, these two 18-year-olds convinced experienced investors to fund their AI-powered API startup with $500,000.
Coming in hot: In a world of endless instant gratification, Zepto has raised a whopping $665 million to make sure you never have to wait more than 10 minutes for your groceries or electronics. Investors are going wild like they've never seen a grocery app before. CRM-packed. Super-smart: Forget the conventional notion that CRMs are nothing more than soul-sucking spreadsheets. Christopher O'Donnell, the former executive who made HubSpot famous, is back with a vengeance, this time armed with AI. $50 million buy-now button: Have you ever felt like shopping online is like searching for a needle in a digital haystack? Daydream seems to think so too, and has decided to tackle the challenge head-on. Armed with a massive $50 million seed fund and a trove of AI-powered tools, the company aims to make e-commerce search as easy as finding cat videos online. Meow.
More TechCrunch articles you shouldn't miss…
Every week we want to share with you a story that doesn't fit into the categories above, and we don't want you to miss out, so here are some randomly selected stories for you to enjoy.
Pause, collaborate, and listen*: OpenAI is on a mission to be the all-purpose tool of technology. Fresh off of acquiring database company Rockset, the company has now acquired Multi, a startup that's basically Zoom with a bunch of extra features. Simply put, it's awesome!*: Anthropic announced its new and improved AI model, Claude 3.5 Sonnet. Though touted as the best model yet, it's more of a gentle step forward than a giant leap for AI. The new model is better at analyzing text and images, but don't expect it to be better at telling jokes than the previous model. AI humor is a mystery that's still being solved. But that's why people notice me, right? I'm funny. People say so. Boulevard of Broken Dreams*: The courtroom drama surrounding Fisker's Chapter 11 bankruptcy is heating up faster than lawyers can chase billable hours. With accusations of “suspicious activity” and heated exchanges that would have been better suited to daytime TV than bankruptcy court, the fight over Fisker's assets is escalating into an all-out courtroom battle. Come and greet your friends*: Just when you thought antivirus software was a thing of the past, the U.S. government has voiced a different opinion. Kaspersky is off limits! Citing national security concerns and the possibility of Russia weaponizing data, the U.S. government has declared a “first” ban on a popular antivirus software. All is waiting for you*: In a world where venture capital for black women is as rare as a hen's dentist, Fearless Fund co-founder Ayana Parsons has decided to swap her boardroom for a beachfront spot. Announcing her resignation on LinkedIn, Parsons will now be leaving her role as general partner and COO to “enjoy island life” with her family. It's a shame that tech heavyweights aren't backing Fearless Fund as this courtroom drama unfolds.
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