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  • The OpenAI mafia: 18 startups founded by alumni | TechCrunch

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    Move over, PayPal mafia: There’s a new tech mafia in Silicon Valley. As the startup behind ChatGPT, OpenAI is arguably the biggest AI player in town. The company is reportedly now in talks to finalize a $100 billion deal, valuing the company at more than $850 billion.  

    Many employees have come and gone since the company first launched a decade ago, and some have launched startups of their own. Among these, some have become top rivals (like Anthropic), while others, just on investor interest alone, have managed to raise billions without even launching a product (see, Thinking Machine Labs).  

    In January, Aliisa Rosenthal, OpenAI’s first sales leader, spoke a little bit about this growing network. She, like the other OpenAI alums who did not become founders, decided to become an investor and said she was going to tap into the ex-OpenAI founder network to look for deal flow. We know Peter Deng, OpenAI’s former head of consumer products (and now general partner at Felicis) already has.  

    Below is a roundup of the major startups founded by OpenAI alumni, in alphabetical order. And we are certain this list will grow over time. 

    David Luan — Adept AI Labs 

    David Luan was OpenAI’s engineering VP until he left in 2020. After a stint at Google, in 2021 he co-founded Adept AI Labs, a startup that builds AI tools for employees. The startup last raised $350 million at a valuation north of $1 billion in 2023, but Luan left in late 2024 to oversee Amazon’s AI agents lab after Amazon hired Adept’s founders.

    Dario Amodei, Daniela Amodei, and John Schulman — Anthropic

    Siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei left OpenAI in 2021 to form their own startup, San Francisco-based Anthropic, that has long touted a focus on AI safety. OpenAI co-founder John Schulman joined Anthropic in 2024, pledging to build a “safe AGI.” The company has since become OpenAI’s biggest rival and just raised a $30 billion Series G, nabbing a $380 billion valuation in the process. IPO rumors are also swirling, as the company reportedly prepares for a public listing that could come sometime this year. (OpenAI is also allegedly preparing for an IPO this year and is maybe even trying to beat Anthropic to the public market.) 

    Rhythm Garg, Linden Li, and Yash Patil — Applied Compute  

    Three ex-OpenAI staffers (Rhythm Garg, Linden Li, and Yash Patil) have reportedly raised $20 million for a startup called Applied Compute, as reported by Upstart Media. All three of them worked as technical staff at OpenAI for more than a year before leaving last May to launch the startup, per their LinkedIns. The startup helps enterprises train and deploy custom AI agents. Benchmark led the round, valuing the 10-month-old company at $100 million, Upstart Media reported. 

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    Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen, and Rocky Duan — Covariant

    The trio all worked at OpenAI in 2016 and 2017 as research scientists before founding Covariant, a Berkeley, California-based startup that builds foundation AI models for robots. In 2024, Amazon hired all three of the Covariant founders and about a quarter of its staff. The quasi-acquisition was viewed by some as part of a broader trend of Big Tech attempting to avoid antitrust scrutiny. 

    Tim Shi — Cresta 

    Tim Shi was an early member of OpenAI’s team, where he focused on building safe artificial general intelligence (AGI), according to his LinkedIn profile. He worked at OpenAI for a year in 2017 but left to found Cresta, a San Francisco-based AI contact center startup that has raised over $270 million from VCs like Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and others, according to a press release.

    Jonas Schneider — Daedalus

    Jonas Schneider led OpenAI’s software engineering for robotics team but left in 2019 to co-found Daedalus, which builds advanced factories for precision components. The San Francisco-based startup raised a $21 million Series A last year with backing from Khosla Ventures, among others.

    Andrej Karpathy — Eureka Labs

    Computer vision expert Andrej Karpathy was a founding member and research scientist at OpenAI, leaving the startup to join Tesla in 2017 to lead its autopilot program. Karpathy is also well-known for his YouTube videos explaining core AI concepts. He left Tesla in 2024 to found his own education technology startup, Eureka Labs, a San Francisco-based startup that is building AI teaching assistants.

    Margaret Jennings — Kindo

    Margaret Jennings worked at OpenAI in 2022 and 2023 until she left to co-found Kindo, which markets itself as an AI chatbot for enterprises. Kindo has raised over $27 million in funding, last raising a $20.6 million Series A in 2024. Jennings left Kindo in 2024 to head product and research at French AI startup Mistral, according to her LinkedIn profile.

    Maddie Hall — Living Carbon

    Maddie Hall worked on “special projects” at OpenAI but left in 2019 to co-found Living Carbon, a San Francisco-based startup that aims to create engineered plants that can suck more carbon out of the sky to fight climate change. Living Carbon raised a $21 million Series A round in 2023, bringing its total funding until then to $36 million, according to a press release.

    Liam Fedus — Periodic Labs  

    Liam Fedus, OpenAI’s VP of post-training research, left the company in March 2025 to team up with his former Google Brain colleague, Ekin Dogus Cubuk, and launch Periodic Labs. The startup seeks to use AI scientists to find new materials, particularly new superconducting materials. It came out of stealth mode in September 2025, armed with a massive $300 million in seed-round funding with backers that included Jezz Bezos, Eric Schmidt, Felicis and Andreessen Horowitz. 

    Aravind Srinivas — Perplexity

    Aravind Srinivas worked as a research scientist at OpenAI for a year until 2022, when he left the company to co-found AI search engine Perplexity. His startup has attracted a string of high-profile investors like Jeff Bezos and Nvidia, although it’s also caused controversy over alleged unethical web scraping. Perplexity, which is based in San Francisco, last reported a raise of $200 million at a $20 billion valuation. 

    Jeff Arnold — Pilot

    Jeff Arnold worked as OpenAI’s head of operations for five months in 2016 before co-founding San Francisco-based accounting startup Pilot in 2017. Pilot, which focused initially on doing accounting for startups, last raised a $100 million Series C in 2021 at a $1.2 billion valuation and has attracted investors like Jeff Bezos. Arnold worked as Pilot’s COO until leaving in 2024 to launch a VC fund.

    Shariq Hashme — Prosper Robotics

    Shariq Hashme worked for OpenAI for 9 months in 2017 on a bot that could play the popular video game Dota, per his LinkedIn profile. After a few years at data-labeling startup Scale AI, he co-founded London-based Prosper Robotics in 2021. The startup says it’s working on a robot butler for people’s homes, a hot trend in robotics that other players like Norway’s 1X and Texas-based Apptronik are also working on.

    Ilya Sutskever — Safe Superintelligence 

    OpenAI co-founder and chief scientist Ilya Sutskever left OpenAI in May 2024 after he was reportedly part of a failed effort to replace CEO Sam Altman. Shortly afterward, he co-founded Safe Superintelligence, or SSI, with “one goal and one product: a safe superintelligence,” he says. Details about what exactly the startup is up to are scant: It has no product and no revenue yet. But investors are clamoring for a piece anyway, and it’s been able to raise $2 billion, with its latest valuation reportedly rising to $32 billion this month. SSI is based in Palo Alto, California, and Tel Aviv, Israel.

    Emmett Shear — Stem AI

    Emmett Shear is the former CEO of Twitch who was OpenAI’s interim CEO in November 2023 for a few days before Sam Altman rejoined the company. Shear launched an AI company, StemAI, in 2024 (though it seems to have since rebranded as Softmax). The company, which appears to be a research company, has attracted funding from Andreessen Horowitz.

    Mira Murati — Thinking Machines Lab 

    Mira Murati, OpenAI’s CTO, left OpenAI to found her own company, Thinking Machines Lab, which emerged from stealth in February 2025. It said at the time (rather vaguely) that it will build AI that’s more “customizable” and “capable.” The San Francisco AI startup, now valued at $12 billion, announced its first product late last year: an API that fine-tunes language models. It recently made headlines when two of its co-founders announced earlier this year that they would return to OpenAI. 

    Kyle Kosic — xAI

    Kyle Kosic left OpenAI in 2023 to become a co-founder and infrastructure lead of xAI, Elon Musk’s AI startup that offers a rival chatbot, Grok. In 2024, however, he hopped back to OpenAI, where he remains. Meanwhile, xAI (which acquired Musk’s social media site X) was purchased by Musk’s SpaceX, giving the coalesce company a valuation of $1.25 trillion. It is looking to go public sometime in June for what could be a historic listing. 

    Angela Jiang — Worktrace AI

    Angela Jiang left OpenAI in 2024, after working as a product manager and on the public policy team. In April 2025, she quietly launched Worktrace, which uses AI to help enterprises make business operations more efficient. It observes employee work patterns and automates workflow, according to the company’s website. The business is backed by Mura Murati, OpenAI’s former CTO, who went on to launch Thinking Labs. It is also backed by OpenAI’s startup fund, in addition to a slew of other OpenAI names, like its chief strategy officer, Jason Kwon. 

    Stealth Startups

    In addition to these startups, a number of other former OpenAI employees have founded startups that are still in stealth mode, according to various updates TechCrunch found on LinkedIn. For instance, it seems that former OpenAI researcher Danilo Hellermark has been working on a generative AI stealth startup for the past few years. He officially left OpenAI at the beginning of 2023. There’s also one apparently in the works from Lucas Negritto, who worked on OpenAI’s technical team and left the company in 2023 after three years. Since then, he’s founded one startup and has been working on another since August 2025, according to his LinkedIn. 

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    Charles Rollet, Dominic-Madori Davis

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  • These AI notetaking devices can help you record and transcribe your meetings | TechCrunch

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    Digital meeting notetakers like Read AI, Fireflies.ai, Fathom, and Granola help record and transcribe online meetings. But for in-person or more versatile options, many people prefer physical recording devices These physical notetakers transcribe audio and give users summaries and action items of meetings using AI.

    Some of these devices are wearable—pins or pendants with dedicated mics for recording—while others are credit-card sized with dedicated mobile apps to transcribe and extract insights using AI. A few even offer live translation.

    Below is a non-exhaustive list of physical AI notetakers and transcription tools.

    Plaud Note/Plaud Note Pro

    This credit card-sized notetaker has been around since 2023, with a newer, AI-powered Pro version that has a small screen, four mics, and records audio within three to five meters. It also can switch between in-person recording and call recording.

    Plaud Note Pro. Image Credis: Ivan MehtaImage Credits:Ivan Mehta

    The Plaud Note costs $159, while the Note Pro costs $179. They come with 300 minutes of transcription free per month.

    Mobvoi TicNote

    Mobvi’s rectangular notetaker is priced at $159 and includes 600 free transcription minutes. The company claims the device shows real-time transcription and translation with support for more than 120 languages. The device offers 25 hours of continuous recording through its three microphones.

    Image Credits: Ticnote

    In terms of software features, the TicNote offers automatic highlight extraction and the ability to create audio clips or summarized podcast versions of a conversation.

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    Comulytic Note Pro

    Comulytic is a newer entrant in the hardware AI notetaker market. The company’s claim for differentiation is that its $159 Note Pro device doesn’t require any additional subscription for basic transcription. That means you can transcribe unlimited minutes by just buying the device.

    Image Credits: Comulytic

    The device can record up to 45 hours of audio continuously on a single charge and has more than 100 days of standby time.

    The company has a $15 per month or $119 per year advanced plan that offers instant AI summaries, unlimited templates for summaries, an action item list, and chat with AI assistant without any limits.

    Plaud NotePin/Plaud NotePin S

    Plaud NotePin and NotePin S are the smaller and more pocketable versions of the company’s larger Note and Note Pro devices. The NotePin has a versatile design: You can wear it as a wrist band, a pendant, clip it to your bag, or wear it on your shirt with a magnetic attachment. Notably, the lanyard and wristband are only available with the NotePin S.

    Image Credits: PlaudImage Credits:Plaud

    Both devices have two mics, and can record around 20 hours of audio continuously on a single charge. The NotePin S has a physical button to start/stop recording and capture highlights.

    Both are similarly priced to their credit-card-shaped counterparts. The NotePin is priced at $159, and the NotePin S is priced at $179.

    Omi pendant

    The Omi pendant is a cheaper alternative to other notetakers at $89. This is because the pendant has to be connected to your phone and doesn’t have any onboard memory. The device has two mics and can run for 10 to 14 hours on a charge.

    Image Credits: Omi

    While Omi has its own app, you can use other apps as the hardware and software are open-sourced. Users have also built different connectors and apps for the device.

    Viaim RecDot

    Viaim’s earbuds allow for transcription during calls, with additional recording capabilities in the earbuds’ case. These buds are priced at $200 and Viaim claims they can transcribe audio in up to 78 languages in real-time. The company’s app can also highlight key points in transcriptions.

    Viaim ReCDoc

    Anker Soundcore Work

    Anker’s Soundcore Work pin is a coin-sized AI notetaker with a puck-shaped battery pack. The $159 device can record for eight hours without breaks, or up to 32 hours if the pin is attached to its case, the company says.

    Image Credits: Anker

    Anker claims that the device has a five-meter recording range. Users get 300 minutes of transcription free per month.

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    Ivan Mehta

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  • Meet the new European unicorns of 2026 | TechCrunch

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    January was such a long month that it has already brought us five fresh European unicorns: from Belgium to Ukraine, several tech startups raised funding at valuations above the $1 billion threshold.

    But before we take a closer look at who joined the club, two caveats.

    First: This count includes startups that may be incorporated elsewhere but have their roots or a large part of their team in Europe. Until a pan-European corporate structure exists (often called “EU Inc”), this split will remain common — and we’ve decided to overlook it. Take Lovable, which is incorporated in Delaware but cannot be dissociated from Stockholm’s startup scene.

    Second: valuation doesn’t equal commercial success, and it is too early to tell whether all of these companies will achieve the kind of traction that Lovable has, with the company recently crossing $300 million in annual recurring revenue. But in the current climate, the fact that VCs were willing to invest in them at unicorn valuations is a strong signal of where the appetite is. 

    With these caveats out of the way, let’s dive in.

    Aikido 

    Belgium-based cybersecurity startup Aikido Security reached unicorn status with its $60 million Series B funding round. Valuing the company at $1 billion, the round was led by DST Global, with participation from PSG Equity, Singular, Notion Capital, and others.

    According to a press release, the funding will help Aikido enhance its platform, which was built to unify security across the entire software lifecycle and is already used by more than 100,000 teams globally. The company also reported “five-times revenue growth and nearly three-times customer growth” over the last year.

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    In a blog post, the startup celebrated this milestone and its significance. According to its team, “in an industry dominated by Palo Alto and Tel Aviv heavyweights, Aikido shows that Europe can build a world-class software security company and win globally.”

    Cast AI 

    Cloud optimization company Cast AI is headquartered in Florida, but has Lithuanian roots and a major office in Vilnius — which explains why many now consider it to have become Lithuania’s fifth unicorn.

    Cast AI’s valuation now exceeds $1 billion following a strategic investment from Pacific Alliance Ventures (PAV), the U.S.-based corporate venture arm of Korean conglomerate Shinsegae Group. In April 2025, Cast AI raised a $108 million Series C that had reportedly already brought the company close to unicorn territory.

    Alongside its latest funding round, the company also introduced OMNI Compute for AI, which aims to help users deploy more AI workloads on fewer GPUs and remove regional capacity constraints.

    Harmattan AI 

    French defense tech company Harmattan AI was only founded in 2024, but is already worth $1.4 billion, according to its latest funding round. The $200 million Series B was led by Dassault Aviation, maker of the Rafale fighter jets, and also ties into a broader partnership.

    Before securing this key partner, Harmattan AI had already signed agreements with the French and British ministries of defense and with Ukrainian drone maker Skyeton, amid growing appetite for autonomous defense aircraft.

    Osapiens 

    German ESG software firm Osapiens raised a $100 million Series C led by Decarbonization Partners, a joint venture between BlackRock and Temasek, which valued the company at over $1.1 billion.

    Founded in Mannheim in 2018, Osapiens now has more than 2,400 customers worldwide, including large multinational companies that rely on its platforms and tools for sustainability reporting and data compliance, but also to mitigate supply chain risks.

    Preply

    The 14-year-old language learning marketplace Preply is now a unicorn valued at $1.2 billion — a milestone that also embodies Ukrainian resilience. The edtech company was founded in the United States, but its founders are Ukrainian and supporters of their home country, where Preply has a team of 150 employees.

    According to its CEO, Kirill Bigai, who believes in AI-enhanced learning, proceeds from the $150 million Series D round will help the startup hire more AI talent across its four offices — now located in Barcelona, London, New York, and Kyiv.

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    Anna Heim

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  • A timeline of the US semiconductor market in 2025 | TechCrunch

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    Last year was a tumultuous one for the U.S. semiconductor industry.  

    From leadership changes at legacy companies to continuously changing dialogue around AI chip export controls, a lot has happened. If the first few weeks of 2026, which saw new chip tariffs and international semiconductor deals, are any indicator — this year will be as unexpected as the last.  

    But before we get too deep into 2026, here is a final look at everything that happened in the U.S. semiconductor industry in 2025:  

    December

    Nvidia finds gold with Groq 

    December 24: Nvidia announced that it struck a non-exclusive licensing deal with chip maker Groq. While this wasn’t an acquisition, Nvidia hired Groq’s founder and president, in addition to other employees. The company also bought $20 billion worth of Groq’s assets.  

    Chips to China 

    December 8: The U.S. Department of Commerce decided that Nvidia and AMD can send AI chips to China after all, a stark reversal to past messaging. The U.S. government specifically said Nvidia could sell its H200 chips, which are much more advanced than its H20 chips, to approved customers.  

    November 

    Nvidia keeps climbing 

    November 19: Nvidia reported record results in its third-quarter earnings report. The company racked up $57 billion in revenue in Q3, a 66% increase over the same quarter in 2024. A large portion of that revenue came from Nvidia’s data center business.  

    October

    Intel makes processor progress 

    October 9: Intel announced a new processor, dubbed Panther Lake, that is part of the company’s Intel Core Ultra processor family. This will be the first one built on the company’s 18A semiconductor process and will be exclusively made at Intel’s Arizona fab factory.  

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    September

    A taste of tariffs 

    September 26: We got the first inkling of what the Trump administration’s semiconductor tariffs could look like at the end of September. Rumors started swirling that the administration would require semiconductor companies to produce the same volume of chips domestically as they do internationally, or they would otherwise be subject to tariffs.  

    China shuts out Nvidia 

    September 17: China’s campaign against Nvidia continued when the country told its domestic companies not to buy Nvidia’s chips. The Cyberspace Administration of China banned local companies from buying Nvidia’s chips in an effort to boost domestic chip sales.  

    China calls out Nvidia

    September 15: Despite being given a loose green light to start selling chips again in China, the process was not going to be smooth sailing for Nvidia. China’s State Administration for Market Regulation ruled that Nvidia violated the country’s antitrust regulations regarding the company’s 2020 acquisition of Mellanox Technologies.  

    A leadership shakeup

    September 9: Just a few short weeks after the U.S. government took an equity stake in Intel, the company made some notable leadership changes. Michelle Johnston Holthaus, the chief executive officer of Intel products, departed after three decades. The company also created a central engineering group.  

    August

    Nvidia reports record quarter

    August 27: The turmoil in the semiconductor market over the year had clearly not hurt Nvidia. On August 27, the company reported that it had record sales in the second quarter. The highlights were the growth of its data center business, which saw its revenue grow 56% year over year.

    U.S. Government takes equity stake in Intel

    August 22: The U.S. government announced it was converting existing government grants into a 10% stake in Intel. The deal was structured to penalize Intel if the company’s ownership in its foundry program dropped below 50%.

    SoftBank takes a stake in Intel

    August 18: Japanese conglomerate SoftBank announced it was taking a $2 billion stake in Intel. SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son called the deal “strategic.” The transaction was announced as rumors were swirling that the U.S. was going to take a stake in the company.

    Chip companies strike a deal to sell in China

    August 12: Nvidia and AMD announced that they struck a deal with the U.S. government to gain the necessary license to sell their AI chips in China. Both companies agreed to pay the U.S. government 15% of revenue from their chip sales in China.

    Trump and Lip-Bu Tan meet

    August 11: Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan went to the White House to meet with President Trump. The pair talked about Tan’s past and how Intel can help the U.S. with its goal of bringing semiconductor manufacturing back to the U.S. Both called the conversation productive.

    Trump comes for Lip-Bu Tan

    August 7: President Donald Trump demanded that Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan “resign immediately” due to “conflicts of interest” in a Truth Social post. While Trump didn’t clarify what the conflicts of interest were, this came the day after Republican Senator Tom Cotton sent a letter to Intel’s board of directors inquiring about Tan’s ties to China.

    Trump says tariffs are coming for the industry

    August 5: President Donald Trump told CNBC’s Squawk Box that he was planning to announce tariffs on the semiconductor industry as soon as the following week. At the time, he didn’t mention specifics on what these tariffs could look like. As of September 5, no tariffs have been announced for this industry.

    July

    Intel spins out business unit

    July 25: Just one day after its second-quarter earnings call, Intel confirmed that it was spinning out its Network and Edge group, which is responsible for making chips for the telecom industry. The business unit produced $5.8 billion in revenue for the semiconductor company in 2024.

    Intel continues to look for efficiency

    July 24: Intel announced that it was pulling back on some of its manufacturing operations. The company said it will longer pursue its previously announced projects in Germany and Poland and that it was consolidating its test operations. Intel also announced it plans to end this year with around 75,000 employees.

    Trump’s AI Action Plan

    July 23: The Trump administration unveiled its much-anticipated AI Action Plan alongside multiple related executive orders. While the plan included a lot regarding the need for U.S. chip export controls and for the U.S. to coordinate with its allies on this effort, it didn’t provide concrete information on what those restrictions would look like.

    Groundbreaking UAE AI deal reportedly on hold

    July 17: The Trump administration helped foster a groundbreaking deal in May that resulted in a commitment from the United Arab Emirates to buy billions of dollars’ worth of AI chips from Nvidia. But now that deal was reportedly on hold as the U.S. worked through national security concerns and fears that those chips could be smuggled from the Middle East to China.

    Nvidia is a bargaining chip

    July 16: A day after semiconductor firms like Nvidia and AMD got the green light to resume selling certain AI chips to China, we found out why. U.S. Commerce Security Howard Lutnick said the plans to allow U.S. companies to start selling AI chips in China are tied to ongoing trade discussions between the U.S. and China regarding rare earth elements.

    U.S. chips head back to China

    July 14: Nvidia said it was filing an application to restart sales of H20 AI chips in China, confirming rumors from a few weeks prior. The company also announced that it would be selling a new chip, the RTX Pro, which was designed specifically for the Chinese market.

    Malaysia fights chip smuggling

    July 14: Malaysia announced that it was launching trade permits for U.S.-made AI chips. Under this new restriction, any individual or business would need to give the Malaysian government 30 days’ notice before exporting any U.S. AI chips.

    June

    Intel appoints new leadership

    June 18: Intel announced four new leadership appointments that Intel said will help it move toward its goal of becoming an engineering-first company again. Intel announced a new chief revenue officer in addition to multiple high-profile engineering hires.

    Intel began layoffs

    June 17: Intel began laying off a significant chunk of its Intel Foundry staff in July, according to various media reports. The company later confirmed it was restructuring. Reports said it planned to eliminate 15% to 20%, of workers in that business unit. These layoffs weren’t a shock: Layoffs were rumored back in April, and Intel’s CEO Lip-Bu Tan had said he wants to flatten the organization.

    Nvidia won’t report on China

    June 13: Nvidia wasn’t counting on the U.S. backing off from its AI chip export restrictions. After the company took a financial hit from the newly imposed licensing requirements on its H20 AI chips, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the company will no longer include the Chinese market in future revenue and profit forecasts.

    AMD acquired the team behind Untether AI

    June 6: AMD made another acquisition — this time focused on talent. The company acqui-hired the team behind Untether AI, which develops AI inference chips, as the semiconductor giant continues to round out its AI offerings.

    AMD is coming for Nvidia’s AI hardware dominance

    June 4: AMD continued its shopping spree. The company acquired AI software optimization startup Brium, which helps companies retrofit AI software to work with different AI hardware. With a lot of AI software being designed with Nvidia hardware in mind, this acquisition isn’t surprising.

    May

    Nvidia laid out the impact of chip export restrictions

    May 28: Nvidia reported that U.S. licensing requirements on its H20 AI chips cost the company $4.5 billion in charges during Q1. The company expected these requirements to result in an $8 billion hit to Nvidia’s revenue in Q2.

    AMD acquired Enosemi

    May 28: AMD kicked off its acquisition spree. The semiconductor company announced that it acquired Enosemi, a silicon photonics startup. Enosemi’s tech, which uses light photons to transmit data, is becoming an increasing area of interest for semiconductor companies.

    Tensions started to flare between China and the U.S.

    May 21: China’s Commerce Secretary didn’t like the U.S. guidance, issued on May 13, that warned U.S. companies that using Huawei’s AI chips “anywhere in the world” was a U.S. chip export violation. The commerce secretary issued a statement that threatened legal action against anyone caught enforcing that export restriction.

    Intel began the process to offload units

    May 20: Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan seemingly got right to work on his plan to spin out Intel’s non-core business units. Back in May, the semiconductor giant was reportedly looking to offload its Networking and Edge units, which make chips for telecom equipment, and was responsible for $5.4 billion of the company’s 2024 revenue.

    The Biden administration’s AI Diffusion rule was officially dead

    May 13: Just days before the Biden administration’s Artificial Intelligence Diffusion Rule was set to go into place, the U.S. Department of Commerce formally rescinded it. The DOC said that it plans to issue new guidance in the future, and in the meantime, companies should remember that using Huawei’s Ascend AI chips anywhere in the world is a violation of U.S. export rules.

    A last-minute reversal

    May 7: Just a week before the “Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion” was set to go into place, the Trump administration planned on taking a different path. According to multiple media outlets, including Axios and Bloomberg, the administration wouldn’t enforce the restrictions when they were supposed to start on May 15 and is instead working on its own framework. 

    April

    Anthropic doubles down on its support of chip export restrictions

    April 30: Anthropic doubled down on its support for restricting U.S.-made chip exports, including some tweaks to the Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion, like imposing further restrictions on Tier 2 countries and dedicating resources to enforcement. An Nvidia spokesperson shot back, saying, “American firms should focus on innovation and rise to the challenge, rather than tell tall tales that large, heavy, and sensitive electronics are somehow smuggled in ‘baby bumps’ or ‘alongside live lobsters.’” 

    Planned layoffs at Intel

    April 22: Ahead of its Q1 earnings call, Intel said it was planning to lay off more than 21,000 employees. The layoffs were meant to streamline management, something CEO Lip-Bu Tan has long said Intel needed to do, and help rebuild the company’s engineering focus. 

    The Trump administration further restricts chip exports

    April 15: Nvidia’s H20 AI chip got hit with an export licensing requirement, the company disclosed in an SEC filing. The company added that it expected $5.5 billion in charges related to this new requirement in the first quarter of its 2026 fiscal year. The H20 was the most advanced AI chip Nvidia can still export to China in some fashion. TSMC and Intel reported similar expenses the same week. 

    Nvidia appears to talk its way out of further chip exports

    April 9: Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang was spotted attending dinner at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, according to reports. At the time, NPR reported Huang may have been able to spare Nvidia’s H20 AI chips from export restrictions upon agreeing to invest in AI data centers in the U.S. 

    An alleged agreement between Intel and TSMC

    April 3: Intel and TSMC allegedly reached a tentative agreement to launch a joint chipmaking venture. This joint venture would operate Intel’s chipmaking facilities, and TSMC would have a 20% stake in the new venture. Both companies declined to comment or confirm. If this deal doesn’t come to fruition, this is likely a decent preview of potential deals in the industry to come. 

    Intel warned it will spin off non-core assets

    April 1: CEO Lip-Bu Tan got to work right away. Just weeks after he joined Intel, the company announced that it was going to spin off non-core assets so it could focus. He also said the company would launch new products, including custom semiconductors for customers. 

    March

    Intel names a new CEO 

    March 12:  Intel announced that industry veteran and former board member Lip-Bu Tan would return to the company as CEO on March 18. At the time of his appointment, Tan said Intel would be an “engineering-focused company” under his leadership. 

    February

    Intel’s Ohio chip plant gets delayed again

    February 28: Intel was supposed to start operating its first chip fabrication plant in Ohio this year. Instead, the company slowed down construction on the plant for the second time in February. Now the $28 billion semiconductor project won’t wrap up construction until 2030 and may not even open until 2031.

    Senators call for more chip export restrictions

    February 3: U.S. senators, including Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo), wrote a letter to Commerce Secretary Nominee-Designate Howard Lutnick, urging the Trump administration to further restrict AI chip exports. The letter specifically referred to Nvidia’s H20 AI chips, which were used in the training of DeepSeek’s R1 “reasoning” model. 

    January 

    DeepSeek releases its open “reasoning” model

    January 27: Chinese AI startup DeepSeek caused quite the stir in Silicon Valley when it released the open version of its R1 “reasoning” model. While this isn’t semiconductor news specifically, the sheer alarm in the AI and semiconductor industries DeepSeek caused continues to have ripple effects on the chip industry. 

    Joe Biden’s executive order on chip exports

    January 13: With just a week left in office, former president Joe Biden proposed sweeping new export restrictions on U.S.-made AI chips. This order created a three-tier structure that determined how many U.S. chips can be exported to each country. Under this proposal, Tier 1 countries faced no restrictions; Tier 2 countries had a chip purchase limit for the first time; and Tier 3 countries got additional restrictions. 

    Anthropic’s Dario Amodei weighs in on chip export restrictions

    January 6: Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei co-wrote an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal endorsing existing AI chip export controls and pointing to them as a reason why China’s AI market was behind the U.S. He also called on incoming president Donald Trump to impose further restrictions and to close loopholes that have allowed AI companies in China to still get their hands on these chips.

    This story was originally published on May 9, 2025, and is regularly updated with new information.

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  • Here are the 55 US AI startups that raised $100M or more in 2025 | TechCrunch

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    The AI industry entered 2025 with strong momentum. 

    There were 49 startups that raised funding rounds worth $100 million or more in 2024, per our count at TechCrunch; three companies raised more than one “mega-round,” and seven companies raised rounds that were $1 billion in size or larger. 

    The industry didn’t slow down in 2025. While less companies raised rounds larger than $1 billion, four — Anthropic raised two rounds over $1 billion — significantly more companies raised multiple rounds compared to 2024, eight.  

    How will 2026 compare? Elon Musk’s xAI announced a $20 billion Series E round and Sam Altman’s brain computer interface startup Merge Labs raised a $250 million seed round (with OpenAI as the lead investor) in the first few weeks of 2026, so signs point to another strong year. Of course, it’s still early; we’ll be watching to see if the momentum continues. 

    Here are all the U.S. AI companies that raised $100 million last year: 

    December: 

    • Austin, Texas-based Mythic, which builds power-efficient compute for AI, raised a $125 million venture round that was led by DCVC. The round was announced on December 17 and included SoftBank, NEA and Linse Capital, among other investors.  
    • Chai Discovery announced a $130 million Series B round on December 15. The round valued the company that builds AI models for biotech and drug discovery at $1.2 billion. Oak HC/FT and General Catalyst co-led the round.  
    • Generative media platform Fal announced its third funding round of 2025 on December 9. This $140 million Series D round was led by Sequoia and valued the company at more than $4.5 billion.  
    • Unconventional AI announced a monster $475 million seed round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and Andreesen Horowitz on December 8. The round valued the one-year-old startup, which is rethinking the foundation of computers in the age of AI, at nearly $4.5 billion.  
    • Boston-based 7AI, which builds cybersecurity AI agents, raised a $130 million Series A round that was announced on December 4. Index Ventures led the round with participation from Greylock, Spark Capital and CRV, among others.  

    November

    • All-in-one AI workspace platform Genspark announced a $275 million Series B round that valued the company at $1.25 billion on November 20. The round included Emergence Capital Partners, SBI Investment, and LG Technology Ventures, among others.  
    • Luma AI, which builds models used for photo and video creation, raised $900 million in a Series C round that valued the startup at $4 billion. The round was led by Humain with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, AMD Ventures and Amplify Partners, among others.  
    • Anysphere, the maker of viral vibe-coding platform Cursor, raised $2.3 billion in a funding round that valued the company at $29.3 billion. The round was announced on November 13 and is the company’s second funding round this year.  
    • Parallel, which builds web infrastructure for AI agents, raised a $100 million Series A round that was announced on November 12. The round was co-led by Index Ventures and Kleiner Perkins.  
    • Healthcare AI agent startup Hippocratic AI raised a $126 million Series C round that valued the company at $3.5 billion. The round was the company’s second this year, was announced on November 3, and was led by Avenir Growth.  

    October

    • Fireworks AI, a platform that allows users to build AI applications using open source models, raised a $250 million Series C round that was announced on October 28. The round valued the company at $4 billion.  
    • Enterprise AI startup Uniphore is valued at $2.5 billion after a $260 million Series F round that was announced on October 22. The round included Snowflake Ventures, Nvidia, Databricks Ventures, and AMD, among others.  
    • Sesame, a voice AI company, raised a $250 million Series B round co-led by Sequoia and Spark Capital. The round was announced on October 21 and also included SignalRank as a participant.  
    • Cambridge, Massachusetts’s based OpenEvidence, which builds an AI chatbot for the medical field, raised its second funding round of 2025. The $200 million Series C round was announced on October 20 and valued the company at $6 billion.  
    • Lila Sciences, which is looking to build a science superintelligence platform, announced its second funding round of 2025 on October 14. The $350 million Series A round was co-led by Braidwell and Collective Global. 
    • DeepSeek competitor Reflection AI announced its second mega-round of the year on October 9. The $2 billion Series B round valued the company at $8 billion and was led by Nvidia.  
    • EvenUp, which builds AI for the personal injury legal field, announced a $150 million Series E round that valued the company at more $2 billion on October 7. The round was led by Bessemer with participation from Lightspeed, Bain Capital and SignalFire, among others.  

    September

    • Periodic Labs, which is building an AI scientist, announced a $300 million seed round on September 30. Felicis and Andreessen Horowitz led the round with participation from Nvidia, Lightspeed, and Khosla Ventures, among others.  
    • Cerebras Systems, an AI infrastructure company, raised a sizable $1.1 billion Series G round that valued the company at $8.1 billion. The round was announced on September 30 and was co-led by Fidelity and Atreides Management. 
    • Modular announced a $250 million funding round on September 24. The round was led by US Innovative Technology Fund with participation from GV, Greylock, and General Catalyst, among others.  
    • Distyl AI, which builds AI enterprise software, raised a $175 million Series B round that was announced on September 23. This round valued the startup at $1.8 billion and included investors like Khosla Ventures and Lightspeed.  
    • AI infrastructure startup Upscale AI raised a sizable $100 million seed round that was co-led by Maverick Silicon and Mayfield. The round was announced on September 17 and also included StepStone Group, Stanford University, and Qualcomm Ventures, among others.  
    • Groq, an AI inference company, raised a $750 million Series D-3 round that valued the company at nearly $6.9 billion. The round was announced on September 17 and was led by Disruptive.  
    • AI training startup Invisible Technologies was valued at $2 billion after a $100 million fundraise that was announced on September 16. The raise was led by Vanara Capital with participation from Greycroft, Tallwoods Capital, and Freestyle Capital, among others.  
    • Cognition AI, the creator of vibe-coding agent Devin, raised a $400 million Series C round that was announced on September 8. The round was led by Founders Fund and valued the company at $10.2 billion. 
    • AI Infrastructure startup Baseten raised a $150 million Series D round that valued the company at $2.1 billion. The September 5 round was led by Bond with participation from CapitalG, IVP and Spark Capital, among others.  
    • Bret Taylor’s customer service AI agent platform Sierra raised $350 million in a round led by Greenoaks Capital. This fundraise was announced on September 4 and valued Sierra at more than $10 billion.  
    • You.com, a personalized AI search engine, raised a $100 million Series C round led by Cox Enterprises. The round was announced on September 3 and valued the company at $1.5 billion.  
    • AI research lab Anthropic raised its second round of 2025 in September. Anthropic announced a $13 billion Series F round on September 2 that valued the company at $183 billion. The round was led by Iconiq, Fidelity, and Lightspeed.  

    August

    • Healthcare and housing automation platform EliseAI raised $250 million in a Series E round that valued the startup at $2.2 billion. The round, which was announced on August 20, was led by Andreessen Horowitz.
    • Decart, an AI research lab, raised $100 million at a $3.1 billion valuation. The round included Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, and Zeev Ventures, among others, and was announced on August 7.

    July

    • Generative media platform Fal raised a $125 million Series C round led by Meritech Capital Partners. The company announced the round, which values Fal at $1.5 billion, on July 31. Salesforce Ventures, Shopify Ventures, Google AI Futures Fund, and others joined the round.
    • Five-year-old Ambience Healthcare, which is building an AI healthcare operating system, raised a $243 million Series C round that was led by Oak HC/FT and Andreessen Horowitz. Kleiner Perkins, OpenAI Startup Fund, Smash Capital, and others also participated in the round.
    • Reka AI, an AI research lab, raised $110 million in a round that included Snowflake and Nvidia. The Series B round was announced on July 22 and values the company at $1 billion.
    • AI research lab Thinking Machines Lab confirmed that it raised $2 billion on July 15. This sizable seed round was led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Nvidia, Accel, and AMD, among others. The round values the company at $12 billion.
    • Cambridge, Massachusetts-based OpenEvidence, which is building an AI-powered search tool for clinicians, raised $210 million at a $3.5 billion valuation. The Series B round was announced on July 15 and was led by Kleiner Perkins and GV.
    • Harmonic, which is building a mathematical reasoning engine, raised a $100 million Series B round led by Kleiner Perkins. The round was announced on July 10 and values the company at $875 million.

    June

    • Healthcare AI unicorn Abridge announced it raised a $300 million Series E round that values the company at $5.3 billion. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz with Khosla Ventures participating. It was the company’s second round of 2025.
    • Harvey, which builds AI tools for the legal industry, announced it raised its second $300 million round of 2025 on June 23. This latest Series E round was co-led by Kleiner Perkins and Coatue and brings the company’s valuation to $5 billion.
    • Healthcare AI startup Tennr announced it raised a $101 million Series C round led by IVP with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, GV, and Andreessen Horowitz, among others. The round values the company at $605 million.
    • Enterprise search startup Glean continues to rake in cash. The company announced a $150 million Series F round on June 10, led by Wellington Management with participation from Sequoia, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Kleiner Perkins, among others. Glean is now valued at $7.25 billion.
    • Anysphere, the AI research lab behind AI coding tool Cursor, raised a sizable $900 million Series C round that values the company at nearly $10 billion. The round was led by Thrive Capital with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Accel, and DST Global.

    May

    • AI data labeling startup Snorkel AI announced a $100 million Series D round on May 29, valuing the company at $1.3 billion. The round was led by Addition with participation from Prosperity7 Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Greylock.
    • LMArena, a popular, community-driven benchmarking tool for AI models, raised a $100 million seed round that valued the startup at $600 million. The round was announced on May 21 and was co-led by Andreessen Horowitz and UC Investments. Lightspeed Venture Partners, Kleiner Perkins, and Felicis also participated, among others.
    • Las Vegas-based AI infrastructure company TensorWave announced a $100 million Series A round on May 14. The round was co-led by Magnetar Capital and AMD Ventures with participation from Prosperity7 Ventures, Nexus Venture Partners, and Maverick Silicon.

    April

    • SandboxAQ closed a $450 million Series E round on April 4 that valued the AI model company at $5.7 billion. The round included Nvidia, Google, and Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio among other investors.
    • Runway, which creates AI models for media production, raised a $308 million Series D round that was announced on April 3, valuing the company at $3 billion. It was led by General Atlantic. SoftBank, Nvidia, and Fidelity also participated.

    March

    • AI behemoth OpenAI raised a record-breaking $40 billion funding round that valued the startup at $300 billion. This round, which closed on March 31, was led by SoftBank with participation from Thrive Capital, Microsoft, and Coatue, among others.
    • On March 25, Nexthop AI, an AI infrastructure company, announced that it had raised a Series A round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. The $110 million round also included Kleiner Perkins, Battery Ventures, and Emergent Ventures, among others.
    • Cambridge Massachusetts-based Insilico Medicine raised $110 million for its generative AI-powered drug discovery platform as announced on March 13. This Series E round valued the company at $1 billion and was co-led by Value Partners and Pudong Chuangtou.
    • AI infrastructure company Celestial AI raised a $250 million Series C round that valued the company at $2.5 billion. The March 11 round was led by Fidelity with participation from Tiger Global, BlackRock, and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, among others.
    • Lila Sciences raised a $200 million seed round as it looks to create a science superintelligence platform. The round was led by Flagship Pioneering. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company also received funding from March Capital, General Catalyst, and ARK Venture Fund, among others.
    • Brooklyn-based Reflection.Ai, which looks to build superintelligent autonomous systems, raised a $130 million Series A round that values the 1-year-old company at $580 million. The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and CRV.
    • AI coding startup Turing closed a Series E round on March 7 that valued the startup, which partners with LLM companies, at $2.2 billion. The $111 million round was led by Khazanah Nasional with participation from WestBridge Capital, Gaingels, and Sozo Ventures, among others.
    • Shield AI, an AI defense tech startup, raised $240 million in a Series F round that closed on March 6. This round was co-led by L3Harris Technologies and Hanwha Aerospace, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz and the US Innovative Technology Fund, among others. The round valued the company at $5.3 billion
    • AI research and large language model company Anthropic raised $3.5 billion in a Series E round that valued the startup at $61.5 billion. The round was announced on March 3 and was led by Lightspeed with participation from Salesforce Ventures, Menlo Ventures, and General Catalyst, among others.

    February

    • Together AI, which creates open source generative AI and AI model development infrastructure, raised a $305 million Series B round that valued the company at $3.3 billion. The February 20 round was co-led by Prosperity7 and General Catalyst with participation from Salesforce Ventures, Nvidia, Lux Capital, and others.
    • AI infrastructure company Lambda raised a $480 million Series D round that was announced on February 19. The round valued the startup at nearly $2.5 billion and was co-led by SGW and Andra Capital. Nvidia, G Squared, ARK Invest, and others also participated.
    • Abridge, an AI platform that transcribes patient-clinician conversations, was valued at $2.75 billion in a Series D round that was announced on February 17. The $250 million round was co-led by IVP and Elad Gil. Lightspeed, Redpoint, and Spark Capital also participated, among others.
    • Eudia, an AI legal tech company, raised $105 million in a Series A round led by General Catalyst. Floodgate, Defy Ventures, and Everywhere Ventures also participated in the round in addition to other VC firms and numerous angel investors. The round closed on February 13.
    • AI hardware startup EnCharge AI raised a $100 million Series B round that also closed on February 13. The round was led by Tiger Global with participation from Scout Ventures, Samsung Ventures, and RTX Ventures, among others. The Santa Clara-based business was founded in 2022.
    • AI legal tech company Harvey raised a $300 million Series D round that valued the 3-year-old company at $3 billion. The round was led by Sequoia and announced on February 12. OpenAI Startup Fund, Kleiner Perkins, Elad Gil, and others also participated in the raise.

    January

    • Synthetic voice startup ElevenLabs raised a $180 million Series C round that valued the company at more than $3 billion. It was announced on January 30. The round was co-led by Iconiq and Andreessen Horowitz. Sequoia, NEA, Salesforce Ventures, and others also participated in the round.
    • Hippocratic AI, which develops large language models for the healthcare industry, announced a $141 million Series B round on January 9. This round valued the company at more than $1.6 billion and was led by Kleiner Perkins. Andreessen Horowitz, Nvidia, and General Catalyst also participated, among others.

    This piece was updated on April 23, June 18, August 27, November 26 and January 19, 2026 to include more deals.

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    This piece has been updated to remove that Abridge is based in Pittsburgh; the company was founded there.

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  • 10 useful gadgets for your first apartment | TechCrunch

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    Moving into your first studio apartment can be exciting, but it can also feel a bit overwhelming. You quickly realize how much your old roommates helped out with stuff you took for granted, like light bulbs, smoke detectors, and even a vacuum. 

    To make your new place feel more like home, here are some must-have gadgets that can really help you out.

    SimpliSafe Home Security System — $282.94

    Image Credits:SimpliSafe

    A home security system is a worthwhile investment to ensure your peace of mind in a new apartment. SimpliSafe offers an easy-to-install setup that’s perfect for renters. It’s tool-free to set up, which is a huge perk for renters since you can place sensors on doors and windows with adhesive strips instead of drilling holes.

    The starter kit is tailored for small spaces and includes everything you need for basic home security: a base station, wireless keypad, one motion sensor, and one entry sensor. You can also buy additional sensors — such as glass-break, water, and temperature sensors — and cameras as needed.

    SimpliSafe offers two monitoring options. You can choose to monitor the system yourself or opt for professional monitoring with a subscription plan starting at $23 per month. This includes 24/7 coverage, so if an alarm is triggered, SimpliSafe will reach out to you or dispatch the police if you’re unreachable. 

    Kidde Smart Smoke Detector — $74.97

    Image Credits:Kidde

    While we’re on the subject of safety, a smoke detector is essential. 

    Kidde’s Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detector is highly regarded, and the most notable aspect is that it sends alerts directly to your phone. Another nice detail is that the sensor is designed to avoid false alarms, like cooking smoke.

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    Recently, Kidde enhanced its alarms with Amazon’s Ring technology, enabling push notifications through the Ring app, adding even more convenience.

    Eufy Robot Vacuum

    Image Credits:Eufy

    A robot vacuum can make cleaning a breeze. Whether you’re just trying to keep your hardwood floors tidy, deep cleaning couches, or dealing with pet hair, Eufy is a reputable brand that can help make your life easier. 

    Depending on what you need, you can find new models like the E28, which has fancy features like a HydroJet system for floor washing, hot air drying, and automatic self-emptying. It’s pricier at around $1,399.99, but if you’re more budget-conscious, the 3-in-1 E20 is a solid option at $649.99 and still gets the job done.

    Dyson’s HushJet Purifier — $349.99

    Image Credits:Dyson

    Fresh air is also important, but if you’re in the city, pollution makes it less ideal to open your apartment windows. And if neighbors are frequently cooking, you might deal with an odd mix of smells. An air purifier can significantly improve the quality of your indoor air.

    This compact device from Dyson is quite effective, although it’s on the pricier side. However, the noise level is pleasantly low and many people may find value in the fact that the filter lasts up to five years, which means you won’t need to purchase replacement filters as often. There’s also a convenient app that allows you to track air quality.

    Hatch Sunrise Alarm — $169.99

    Image Credits:Hatch

    Without the presence of a roommate stirring around at the crack of dawn, waking up can become a challenge. If traditional phone alarms don’t cut it, this is where the Hatch Restore 3 comes in. This sunrise alarm gently wakes you by gradually increasing the light. It also includes soothing sleep sounds, a bedside light, and a dimmable clock that’s designed not to be disruptive.

    Yogasleep Sound Machine — $54.99

    Image Credits:Yogasleep

    If you’re sensitive to noise or live in a pet-friendly building with frequent disturbances, a sound machine is perfect. Yogasleep has built a reputation for reliability over the years, making it a go-to choice for drowning out unwanted noise and creating a peaceful environment.

    Philips Hue Smart Lights

    Creating a cozy atmosphere in your first apartment is key, and smart light bulbs offer a great way to customize both brightness and color. An added bonus is that they can be controlled through an app or a voice assistant, making it easy to set the perfect lighting for movie nights, dinner parties, or late-night reading sessions.

    Philips Hue is a trusted brand in smart lighting that offers a range of popular products. What people appreciate most are the app’s features, which make it simple to turn lights on and off, adjust their colors, and set up lighting scenes for different times of day. One notable feature is the ability to upload a photo, and the app will create a new scene based on that color palette.

    Starter kits are priced from $79.99, while a two-pack of bulbs costs around $49.98.

    Leviton’s Smart Dimmer Plug — $24.99

    Image Credits:Leviton

    Smart plugs allow you to control any device plugged into them via a mobile app or voice commands. They provide added convenience, such as turning off your coffee maker while away from home or scheduling when your devices should turn on or off. Plus, they help reduce energy consumption.

    A great option is Leviton’s Decora D23LP smart plug, which works with popular smart home ecosystems such as Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, and Google Home. This plug allows you to not only turn connected devices on and off but also to dim them as needed. You can control the plug through the My Leviton app.

    Lumi Max Portable Projector — $399

    Image Credits:Lumi Labs

    A lightweight projector that’s super compact and stands upright is great for small spaces and easy to tuck away when you’re done. Look for models that run on Google TV, which gives you access to over 10,000 apps, 700,000 movies and shows, plus 800 free live TV channels. Setting one up is easy if you have a Google account, and it comes with a remote and carrying case.

    Ninja Air Fryer — $79

    If you’re cooking for yourself in a compact kitchen, an air fryer is invaluable. It allows you to whip up everything from crispy chicken wings to perfectly roasted vegetables while keeping your cooking area tidy. The Ninja Air Fryer is a top choice for budget-friendly, yet powerful, easy cooking.

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    Lauren Forristal

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  • Nvidia’s AI empire: A look at its top startup investments | TechCrunch

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    No company has capitalized on the AI revolution more dramatically than Nvidia. Its revenue, profitability, and cash reserves have skyrocketed since the introduction of ChatGPT over three years ago — and the many competitive generative AI services that have launched since. Its stock price has soared, making it a $4.6 trillion market cap company. 

    The world’s leading high-performance GPU maker has used its ballooning fortunes to significantly increase investments in startups, particularly in AI. 

    Nvidia has participated in nearly 67 venture capital deals in 2025, surpassing the 54 deals the company completed in all of 2024, according to PitchBook data. Note that these investments exclude those made by its formal corporate VC fund, NVentures, which also significantly increased its investment pace over that period. (PitchBook says NVentures engaged in 30 deals this year, compared to just one in 2022.)  

    Nvidia has stated that the goal of its corporate investing is to expand the AI ecosystem by backing startups it considers to be “game changers and market makers.”  

    Below is a list of startups that raised rounds exceeding $100 million since 2023 where Nvidia is a named participant, organized from the highest to lowest amount raised in the round. 

    This list shows just how far and wide Nvidia has spread its tentacles in the tech industry, beyond supplying its products.

    The billion-dollar-round club

    OpenAI: Nvidia backed the ChatGPT maker for the first time in October 2024, reportedly writing a $100 million check as part of a colossal $6.6 billion round that valued the company at $157 billion. The chipmaker’s investment was dwarfed by OpenAI’s other backers, notably Thrive, which invested $1.3 billion according to The New York Times. While PitchBook data indicates Nvidia did not participate in OpenAI’s $40 billion funding round that closed in March, the company announced in September that it would invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI over time, structured as a strategic partnership to deploy massive AI infrastructure. Nvidia later revealed in its quarterly filings that it might not follow through, stating, “There is no assurance that any investment will be completed on expected terms, if at all.”

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    Anthropic: In November 2025, Nvidia made its first direct investment in the AI lab, committing up to $10 billion as part of a strategic round that included a $5 billion check from Microsoft. In a “circular” spending agreement, Anthropic committed to spending $30 billion on Microsoft Azure compute capacity, as well as buy Nvidia’s future Grace Blackwell and Vera Rubin systems.

    Cursor: In November, Nvidia made its first strategic investment in the AI-powered code assistant participating in a massive $2.3 billion Series D round co-led by Accel and Coatue. The deal valued Cursor at $29.3 billion, a nearly 15-fold increase since the start of the year. While Nvidia has long been an enterprise customer, the round marked its official entry as a shareholder alongside Google.

    xAI: In 2024, OpenAI tried to persuade its investors not to invest in any of its rivals. But Nvidia participated in the $6 billion round of Elon Musk’s xAI last December anyway. Nvidia will also invest up to $2 billion in the equity portion of xAI’s planned $20 billion funding round, Bloomberg reported, a deal structured to help xAI purchase more Nvidia gear. 

    Mistral AI: Nvidia invested in Mistral for the third time when the French-based large language model (LLM) developer raised a €1.7 billion (about $2 billion) Series C at a €11.7billion ($13.5 billion) post-money valuation in September.   

    Reflection AI: In October, Nvidia was one of the most significant investors in Reflection AI, contributing to a $2 billion funding round that valued the one-year-old startup at $8 billion. Reflection AI is positioning itself as a U.S.-based competitor to Chinese DeepSeek, whose open source LLM offers a less-expensive alternative to closed source models from companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic. 

    Thinking Machines Lab: Nvidia was among a long list of investors who backed former OpenAI chief technology officer Mira Murati’s Thinking Machines Lab’s $2 billion seed round. The funding, which was formally announced in July, valued the new AI startup at $12 billion. 

    Inflection: One of Nvidia’s first significant AI investments also had one of the more unusual (but increasingly common) outcomes. In June 2023, Nvidia was one of several lead investors in Inflection’s $1.3 billion round, a company co-founded by Mustafa Suleyman, the famed founder of DeepMind. Less than a year later, Microsoft hired Inflection’s founders, paying $620 million for a non-exclusive technology license, leaving the company with a significantly diminished workforce and a less defined future. 

    Crusoe: In October, the chipmaker participated in a $1.4 billion Series E round that valued the AI data center developer at $10 billion. Nvidia first backed the company in late 2024 during its Series D. Crusoe is a key infrastructure partner for the ‘Stargate’ project, building massive data center campuses in Texas and Wyoming to be leased to Oracle specifically to power OpenAI’s workloads.

    Nscale: After the startup’s $1.1 billion round in September, Nvidia participated in Nscale’s $433 million SAFE funding in October. That’s a deal that secures future equity for investors. Nscale, which formed in 2023 after spinning out of Australian cryptocurrency mining company Arkon Energy, is building data centers in the U.K. and Norway for OpenAI’s Stargate project. 

    Wayve: In May 2024, Nvidia participated in a $1.05 billion round for the U.K.-based startup, which is developing a self-learning system for autonomous driving. Nvidia is expected to invest an additional $500 million in Wayve, the startup told TechCrunch in September. Wayve is testing its vehicles in the U.K. and the San Francisco Bay Area. 

    Figure AI: In September, Nvidia participated in Figure AI’s Series C funding round of over $1 billion, which valued the humanoid robotics startup at $39 billion. The chipmaker first invested in Figure in February 2024 when the company raised a $675 million Series B round at a $2.6 billion valuation. 

    Scale AI: In May 2024, Nvidia joined Accel and other tech giants Amazon and Meta to invest $1 billion in Scale AI, which provides data-labeling services to companies for training AI models. The round valued the San Francisco-based company at nearly $14 billion. In June, Meta invested $14.3 billion for a 49% stake of Scale and hired away the company’s co-founder and CEO Alexandr Wang, as well as several other key Scale employees. 

    The many-hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars club

    Commonwealth Fusion: The chipmaker participated in the nuclear fusion-energy startup’s $863 million funding round in August. The deal, which also included investors like Google and Breakthrough Energy Ventures, valued the company at $3 billion. 

    Cohere: The chipmaker has invested in enterprise LLM provider Cohere across multiple funding rounds, including the $500 million Series D, which closed in August, valuing Cohere at $6.8 billion. Nvidia first backed the Toronto-based startup in 2023. 

    Perplexity: Nvidia first invested in Perplexity in November 2023 and has participated in most of the subsequent funding rounds of the AI search engine startup, including the $500 million round closed in December 2024. The chipmaker participated in the company’s July funding round, which valued Perplexity at $18 billion. However, Nvidia did not join the startup’s subsequent $200 million fundraise in September, which boosted the company’s valuation to $20 billion, according to PitchBook data. 

    Poolside: In October 2024, the AI coding assistant startup Poolside announced it raised $500 million led by Bain Capital Ventures. Nvidia participated in the round, which valued the AI startup at $3 billion. 

    Lambda: AI cloud provider Lambda, which provides services for model training, raised a $480 million Series D at a reported $2.5 billion valuation in February. The round was co-led by SGW and Andra Capital Lambda, and joined by Nvidia, ARK Invest, and others. A significant part of Lambda’s business involves renting servers powered by Nvidia’s GPUs. 

    Black Forest Labs: Nvidia participated in a $300 million Series B for the German startup behind the “Flux” image generation models in December. The round, which was co-led by Salesforce Ventures and Anjney Midha (AMP) valued the company at $3.25 billion.

    CoreWeave: Although CoreWeave is no longer a startup, but a public company, Nvidia invested in GPU-cloud provider when it was still one, back in April 2023. That’s when CoreWeave raised $221 million in funding. Nvidia remains a significant shareholder. 

    Together AI: In February, Nvidia participated in the $305 million Series B of this company, which offers cloud-based infrastructure for building AI models. The round valued Together AI at $3.3 billion and was co-led by Prosperity7, a Saudi Arabian venture firm, and General Catalyst. Nvidia backed the company for the first time in 2023.  

    Firmus Technologies: In September, Firmus Technologies, the Singapore-based data center company, received an AU$330 million (approximately $215 million) in funding at an AU$1.85 billion ($1.2 billion) valuation from investors, including Nvidia. Firmus is developing an energy-efficient “AI factory” in Tasmania, an island state of Australia. The startup originally provided cooling technologies for Bitcoin mining. 

    Uniphore: In October, Nvidia joined fellow tech giants AMD, Snowflake, and Databricks to lead a $260 million Series F round into this Business AI company. Uniphore’s multimodal platform helps enterprises automate complex workflows and deploy “AI agents” across customer service, sales, and marketing.

    Sakana AI: In September 2024, Nvidia invested in the Japan-based startup, which trains low-cost generative AI models using small datasets. The startup raised a massive Series A round of about $214 million at a valuation of $1.5 billion. Sakana raised another $135 million at a $2.65 billion valuation in November, but Nvidia didn’t participate in the round.

    Nuro: In August, Nvidia participated in a $203 million funding round for the self-driving delivery startup. The deal valued Nuro at $6 billion, a significant 30% drop from its peak at $8.6 billion valuation in 2021. 

    Imbue: The AI research lab that claims to be developing AI systems that can reason and code raised a $200 million round in September 2023 from investors, including Nvidia, Astera Institute, and former Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt. 

    Waabi: In June 2024, the autonomous trucking startup raised a $200 million Series B round co-led by existing investors Uber and Khosla Ventures. Other investors included Nvidia, Volvo Group Venture Capital, and Porsche Automobil Holding SE. 

    Deals of over a $100 million

    Ayar Labs: In December 2024, Nvidia invested in the $155 million round of Ayar Labs, a company developing optical interconnects to improve AI compute and power efficiency. This was the third time Nvidia backed the startup. 

    Kore.ai: The startup developing enterprise-focused AI chatbots raised $150 million in December of 2023. In addition to Nvidia, investors participating in the funding included FTV Capital, Vistara Growth, and Sweetwater Private Equity. 

    Sandbox AQ: In April, Nvidia, alongside Google, BNP Paribas, and others, invested $150 million in Sandbox AQ, a startup developing large quantitative models (LQMs) for handling complex numerical analysis and statistical calculations. The investment increased Sandbox AQ’s Series E round to $450 million and the company’s valuation to $5.75 billion. 

    Hippocratic AI: This startup, which is developing large language models for healthcare, announced in January that it raised a $141 million Series B at a valuation of $1.64 billion led by Kleiner Perkins. Nvidia participated in the round, along with returning investors Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, and others. The company claims that its AI solutions can handle non-diagnostic patient-facing tasks such as pre-operating procedures, remote patient monitoring, and appointment preparation. Hippocratic raised another $126 million at a valuation of $3.5 billion in November, but Nvidia didn’t participate in the round.

    Weka: In May 2024, Nvidia invested in a $140 million round for AI-native data management platform Weka. The round valued the Silicon Valley company at $1.6 billion. 

    Runway: In April, Nvidia participated in Runway’s $308 million round, which was led by General Atlantic and valued the startup developing generative AI models for media production at $3.55 billion, according to PitchBook data. The chipmaker has been an investor in since 2023.  

    Bright Machines: In June 2024, Nvidia participated in a $126 million Series C of Bright Machines, a smart robotics and AI-driven software startup. 

    Enfabrica: In September 2023, Nvidia invested in networking chips designer Enfabrica’s $125 million Series B. The startup raised another $115 million in November 2024, but Nvidia didn’t participate in the round. In September, Nvidia reportedly spent over $900 million to hire Enfabrica’s CEO and staff while licensing its technology, in a deal structured as an “acquihire.”

    Reka AI: In July, AI research lab Reka raised $110 million in a round that included Snowflake and Nvidia. The deal tripled the startup’s valuation to over $1 billion, according to Bloomberg.    

    This post was first published in January 2025.

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    Marina Temkin

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  • A guide to choosing the right Apple Watch | TechCrunch

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    This year, Apple released three new Apple Watch models: the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch SE 3, and Apple Watch Ultra 3. Whether you’re looking to get one for yourself, buying a last-minute holiday gift, or exploring the different models, we can help point you in the right direction.

    With its $799 price tag, the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is clearly aimed at a niche, high-end market and athletes. For most consumers, the purchasing decision likely lies between the Apple Watch SE 3 and the Apple Watch Series 11, starting at $249 and $399, respectively.

    Despite its lower price tag, the Apple Watch SE 3 comes with much of the same software as the Series 11. If you’re looking for a straightforward smartwatch with essential features like step counting and sleep tracking, the SE 3 is an excellent and affordable choice. 

    While the Series 11 and Ultra 3 offer modest improvements over their predecessors, the SE 3 has received a significant upgrade from the SE 2. The smartwatch jumps from the S8 chip to the S10 and now features an always-on display, supports fast charging, offers better crack resistance, introduces new health features, includes a wrist-temperature sensor for advanced sleep tracking and retrospective ovulation insights, and more. 

    Image Credits:Apple

    Although it’s not as flashy as the Series 11 and Ultra 3, it definitely stands out and packs great value, especially for first-time buyers and younger users. The gap between the standard and budget smart watches has never felt smaller. 

    Of course, if you want access to more advanced health features, better battery life, and a larger display, the Series 11 would be the better option for your needs. But, it’s worth comparing both models because the SE 3 might be all you need.

    We’ll walk you through the similarities and differences between the two smart watches to help inform your decision.

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    Similarities between the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch SE 3

    Image Credits:Apple
    • S10 chip: Both models come with the same chip, which means there won’t be significant differences in performance.
    • Always-on Retina display: The watches can display the watch face and time, even when your wrist is down.
    • Heart health features: Both watches feature high and low heart rate notifications, irregular rhythm notifications, and low cardio fitness notifications.
    • Wrist flick and double tap gestures: Both models let you do a “wrist flick” gesture to dismiss notifications and timers, and a “double tap” gesture to trigger actions like answering calls or playing music.
    • Emergency SOS: The watches can quickly call local emergency services, share your location, and notify your emergency contacts once you press and hold the side button.
    • Fall detection and crash detection: Both watches can automatically alert emergency services and designated emergency contacts when a hard fall or severe car crash is detected.
    • Water resistant to 50 meters: Both watches can be used for swimming.
    • Sleep tracking: Both models feature sleep tracking, sleep tracking notifications, and Apple’s new Sleep score, which gives you a number on a scale of 1 to 100 for how well you slept. They both also have temperature sensing, which can provide insight into your well-being by tracking nightly changes in your wrist temperature.
    • Cycle tracking with retrospective ovulation estimates: The watches can determine when you most likely ovulated in your previous cycle.
    • Fast charging capabilities: Both watches are fast-charge capable (up to 80% charge in about 30 minutes for the Series 11 and up to 80% charge in about 45 minutes for the SE 3; 15 minutes for up to eight hours of normal use for both models). 
    • Find iPhone: Both watches let you press a button to play a sound on your iPhone to help you locate it. However, the Series 11 does feature “precision finding,” which means it can pinpoint the exact location of your phone.

    Differences between the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch SE 3

    • Battery life: The Series 11 can last up to 24 hours (28 hours in low-power mode), while the SE can last up to 18 hours (32 hours in low-power mode).
    • Health features: The Series 11 comes with more advanced health tracking features, including hypertension notifications (detects high blood pressure), an electrical heat sensor, an ECG app, and Blood Oxygen app.
    • Screen and display: The Series 11 can reach up to 2000 nits, while the SE 3 goes up to 1000 nits. Plus, the Series 11 features a wide-angle OLED, while the SE 3 has a simple OLED display.
    • Size: The Series 11 is available in 46mm and 44mm sizes with aluminum or titanium cases, while the SE 3 comes in 44mm and 40mm sizes with an aluminum case. Additionally, the Series 11 is almost 10% thinner than the SE 3. 
    • Color: The Series 11 comes in aluminum colors: Jet Black, Silver, Rose Gold, and Space Gray, and titanium colors: Natural, Gold, and Slate. The SE 3 comes in Midnight Aluminum and Starlight Aluminum.
    • Other smaller differences: The Series 11 comes with a depth gauge to six meters, a water temperature sensor, 1 nit minimum brightness (vs 2 nit minimum brightness on the SE 3), and certified IP6X dust resistance.

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    Aisha Malik

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  • A beginner’s guide to Mastodon, the open source Twitter alternative | TechCrunch

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    Unless if you’re really in the know about nascent platforms, you probably didn’t know what Mastodon was until Elon Musk bought Twitter and renamed it X. In the initial aftermath of the acquisition, as users fretted over what direction Twitter would take, millions of users hopped over to Mastodon, a fellow microblogging site. As time went on, users would also try out Bluesky, or Instagram’s Threads app — but because Mastodon was founded in 2016, it had years to develop its own identity as more than just an alternate Twitter.

    What is Mastodon?

    Mastodon was founded in 2016 by German software developer Eugen Rochko. Unlike Twitter, Facebook, Reddit or any other popular social media site, Mastodon is a nonprofit, meaning that, ideally, its goal is to benefit the public, rather than shareholders.

    Mastodon might look like a Twitter clone at first glance, but the underlying system behind the microblogging platform is far more complex. The service is decentralized (no, not in a blockchain way), describing itself as a “federated network which operates in a similar way to email.”

    When you first create your account, you choose a server — similar to how you choose to open an email account on Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo or wherever — which generates your profile’s address. So, for example, if you sign up for Mastodon via the climate justice server, then your address will be @[your username]@climatejustice.social. But no matter which server you sign up with, you will be able to communicate with users from any other server, just like how Gmail users email Hotmail users and vice versa. However, some servers might have blocked other servers (perhaps if it’s an unsavory group), which would mean you can’t communicate with anyone from the blocked server.

    The Mastodon lingo

    Mastodon users generally refer to individual communities as “instances” or servers. These Mastodon servers can be run by individuals, groups or organizations that each have their own set of rules regarding how users can sign up, as well as their own moderation policies. Some servers let anyone join, while others are invite-only or require approval by an admin. For example, a server for professional scientists asks applicants to include a link to their research to demonstrate that they are, indeed, professionals.

    Choosing which server to register your account with might seem stressful, but it’s possible to move your account later, so don’t worry. Plus, you can follow people regardless of which server they’re on.

    You may also hear Mastodon described as part of the “Fediverse,” or an interconnected web of various social media services. You know how having a Twitter account doesn’t mean you can use that account on Instagram? Through the Fediverse, your single Mastodon account also grants you access to other decentralized social networks, if that interests you.

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    You may ocassionally see Mastodon’s equivalent of tweets being referred to as “toots,” but this is fading out of favor (since it’s kind of silly!). Many people are just calling them “posts” these days, but “toot” is often found referenced in older third-party clients.

    Mastodon supports a number of Twitter conventions like replies, retweets, favorites, bookmarks and hashtags. For a while, Mastodon made an intentional choice not to make a quote tweet-like feature, since it can encourage dogpiling criticism, but the platform relented and rolled out that feature in 2025.

    In addition, Mastodon lists work slightly differently from Twitter as you can only add people to a list if you’re already following them. And Direct messages on Mastodon are just @username posts, not private messages coming to a DM inbox — just remember to change the visibility settings if you want that message to stay between the two of you.

    Image Credits: Fediverse (opens in a new window)Image Credits:Fediverse (opens in a new window)

    What does it mean that Mastodon is open source?

    Anyone can download, modify and install Mastodon on their own server — plus, the developers of the platform don’t own the copyright.

    That doesn’t mean that you can grab Mastodon’s code without acknowledging the source, though. Former President Donald Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, initially launched with Mastodon code and passed it off as if it were original software. Mastodon did not take kindly to that.

    How do you create a Mastodon account?

    When you arrive on the Mastodon website, you can click a button called “create account,” which directs you to a page listing servers to choose from. You can filter these by various factors, like region, language, topic, sign-up speed and more. There, find a server that piques your interest and join — if it’s a server that requires you to be approved, you might need to wait a bit. From there, you can start finding people to follow, regardless of whether they’re registered via your same server.

    In effort to minimize confusion on new users picking a server, Mastodon made changes amid the “Twitter exodus” so that it would easier to create an account. Now, when you go to sign up, it will give an easy option to create an account on mastodon.social instead of choosing a server.

    How do you decide which Mastodon server to join?

    Mastodon’s website has helpful resources — but it’s still a bit overwhelming and challenging to find a home base that aligns with your interests. Ask friends who are already on Mastodon if they have suggestions! Or just join somewhere random, because you can always change your server affiliation later once you get into the swing of things.

    Can you talk to people on other Mastodon servers besides your own?

    Yes, you can follow people outside of your local server and reply to their posts. However, when you want to follow someone on a different server, you have to enter their username in the search box on your server to find them first, then follow them. You can’t just go to their profile and click the follow button as you would on Twitter.

    What’s the difference between the Home, Local and Federated timelines?

    Your Home timeline shows you posts from people that you follow, similar to Twitter. The Local timeline shows posts from all users in your server, while the Federated timeline shows you all public posts from users that people in your server follow. (Hint: You can turn on “Slow Mode” in Preferences –> Appearance to hide timeline updates behind a click if things are coming at you too fast!)

    What is Mastodon’s moderation policy?

    Individual server admins set their own moderation policies, so you should read the policy on the server you choose to ensure it matches up with your values.

    What are the drawbacks of Mastodon when compared with Twitter/X?

    Mastodon’s user base is a fraction of a percentage of the size of Twitter’s user base. It’s also far less intuitive to navigate, since it hasn’t been designed for a massive global audience like Twitter. That could change in time as more developers join the project in the wake of the Twitter takeover.

    What are the benefits of Mastodon compared with Twitter/X?

    Well, for one thing, Mastodon is not owned by Elon Musk… however, it’s going to be difficult in the near-term for Mastodon to replicate the same “watercooler of the world” vibe that Twitter was defined by. Some users might prefer Mastodon to X, though, as it’s more customizable by nature. Unlike X, individual communities have different content guidelines, which provide a variety of different user experiences. And while the user base on Mastodon is smaller, this can lead to more personal and direct conversations, at times, compared with tweeting into the void, so to speak.

    Is Mastodon safer than Twitter?

    Mastodon is what you make of it. Due to its decentralized nature, if you are looking for a more controlled online experience, you can join a server with stricter guardrails against harassment. Some Mastodon features are also built with mitigating harassment in mind. For example, you can only search by hashtag, not by words that appear in a toot. So if you want your post to be discoverable, you can tag it — if you’d rather limit the audience, no one can find your tweet about the Red Sox by simply searching “red sox” if you haven’t tagged it.

    However, a text-based search can surface the posts you’ve written, favorited, boosted or have been mentioned in, which can be useful.

    Can I post images and video?

    As noted above, Mastodon supports many Twitter conventions, but its support for media is more limited. Where Twitter supports a variety of media and other data appended to tweets, including its audio-only social “Spaces,” plus photos, video, GIFs, polls, precise location and experimental “Status” tags, Mastodon simply supports images, videos, audio and polls.

    You can add up to four images to a post, up to eight megabytes in size. Video and audio can be any length, but with a file size limit of 40 megabytes.

    Can I post privately to friends?

    Mastodon offers the ability to set your post’s privacy at the time of writing. Posts can be set to be public to be visible by all; unlisted to make them public but opted out of discovery features; only visible to your followers; or only visible to those users you’ve mentioned.

    Can I get verified on Mastodon?

    No. There’s no universal verification system like on Twitter. Some servers may vet their user sign-ups and you can self-verify, in a way, by adding links to your Mastodon profile that have a specific attribute (rel=”me”) in order to prove you are who you say you are.

    Some servers are having fun with the idea of verification in a less-than-official fashion. For example, the mstdn.social server lets you add blue-and-white checkmarks and other emoji to your display name if you’d like, which make you look verified, even though these don’t mean anything. (Sort of like Twitter’s new verification system! But for free!)

    Image Credits: @stux@mstdn.social (opens in a new window)Image Credits:mastodon.social/@stux (opens in a new window)

    Is Mastodon here to stay?

    As of summer 2025, Mastodon has under one million monthly active users, and around 10 million registered users — this is to say, Mastodon is much smaller than X which had an estimated 132 million daily active users. Still, not all social networks are created equal, and you might find that you prefer tooting about TTRPGs in a dedicated server, as opposed to tweeting into a realm of madness. Or, you might find that this decentralized system is confusing, and you’ll just ride out the Muskening on X, or switch to Bluesky, Threads, or something else entirely. Choose your own adventure!

    I’m not sure I want to leave X. Can I cross-post from X to Mastodon?

    Yes, this is possible by way of third-party tools. These require you to authorize your account with Twitter and Mastodon and set up parameters. We’ve had success with Moa Party, which allows you to get specific as to which tweets or retweets are cross-posted. But other tools are available, including Mastodon Twitter Crossposter, which is also available here on GitHub.

    Can I find my Twitter friends on Mastodon?

    Yes, this is also possible with third-party tools. We’ve seen many Mastodon users trying out tools like Fedifinder, Twitodon and Debirdify, for example.

    Does Mastodon work with Bluesky and Threads?

    It’s a no for Bluesky — not unless Bluesky chooses to adopt the ActivityPub protocol Mastodon uses. But Bluesky is not planning to integrate with ActivityPub, having decided to build its own networking protocol. There is some skepticism among the developer and open source community about whether or not Bluesky’s decision to go its own way is really about its own protocol’s advantages or if it’s more about producing a spec it could eventually control.

    Threads, however, supports ActivityPub. Users on Threads can choose to share their posts with other Activity Pub servers, including Mastodon.

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    Amanda Silberling

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  • These are the best gadgets for your pet right now | TechCrunch

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    Having a cuddly pet to return home to is one of life’s great joys, and with the latest gadgets and AI technology, pet ownership becomes even more enjoyable and convenient. 

    Here’s a roundup of some gadgets that can be the perfect gifts for any pet parent.

    Petlibro AI-powered pet camera – $99.99

    Image Credits:PetLibro

    Petlibro recently launched its AI-powered Scout Smart Camera, which gives pet owners real-time insights into what their little ones are up to. 

    The app lets you control where the camera looks, and it can also automatically follow your pet as they move around. The camera has two-way audio, so you can talk to your pet if they’re being naughty, and it can even make a little chirping sound to get their attention. Scout can recognize up to two pets, so you can keep track of them separately.

    What makes this device special is the AI descriptions. Scout can recognize when your pet eats, drinks, uses the litter box, or just walks by. It takes pictures and saves daily highlights in the cloud for up to 30 days. To access the AI features, you need to sign up for the standard subscription for $12 a month, or the premium tier for $17 a month.

    Life360 GPS pet tracker – $49.99

    Image Credits:Life360

    This new GPS pet tracker from Life360 is a lifesaver for anyone who worries about their furry friends wandering off. You can attach it to your pet’s collar, and it connects to your phone to give you real-time location tracking. It even has geofencing, which alerts you if your pet leaves a safe area like your yard or neighborhood.

    Additional helpful features include alerts to notify nearby pet owners in the area if your pet escapes, as well as a built-in light to help you locate your pet in the dark.

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    The tracker is offered in three colors: pink, navy, and black. To use all its features, users need to sign up for either the $14.99-per-month Gold plan or the $24.99-per-month Platinum tier.

    Petlibro Wet Food Feeder – $149.99

    The Polar Wet Food Feeder from Petlibro is all about keeping your cat’s wet food fresh while you’re away. It has three compartments and can hold up to 22.2 ounces, so you can be gone for up to 72 hours without worrying about your cat going hungry. The containers are cooled to keep the food fresh, and the bowl trays are BPA-free, dishwasher-safe plastic. 

    The device comes with a mobile app that lets you control the feeder, set up your pet’s feeding schedule, and get notified when your cat starts eating. The app will alert you if your home internet connection goes out, and in case of a power outage, the device can keep the food cold for up to 12 hours.

    Pawport Smart Pet Door – $699

    dog in front of Pawport doggy door
    Image Credits:Pawport

    If you’re fed up with pests and critters sneaking in through regular pet doors, this smart door system from Pawport is built from heavy-duty steel and aluminum, and features two solid deadbolts that can keep out unwanted animals, as well as rain and snow. A new model released this year connects an interior and exterior door through a tunnel-like enclosure for extra security.

    Thanks to a tracker tag and motion-sensing tech, the door will open automatically when your pet approaches. There’s also an app for remotely controlling the door, scheduling when it opens or closes, and issuing voice commands through Alexa, Siri, or Google. 

    PetKit Automatic Litter Box – $499.99

    Cat litter being poured into PetKit's PuraMax automatic litter box
    Image Credits:PetKit

    The PuraMax 2 model from PetKit is currently one of the most popular automatic litter boxes available on the market. It features odor control, a waste bin that’s sealed to keep odors trapped inside, and a citrus-scented deodorizing spray that activates after every cleaning and at random times throughout the day.

    The device’s paired mobile app is also helpful for tracking your cat’s health, as it logs how often your cat uses the box, for how long, when the cleaning cycle starts and ends, and when the deodorizing spray is released. It also tracks your cat’s weight changes, which can help you spot potential health issues early.

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    Lauren Forristal

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  • Every fusion startup that has raised over $100M | TechCrunch

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    Over the last several years, fusion power has gone from the butt of jokes — always a decade away! — to an increasingly tangible and tantalizing technology that has drawn investors off the sidelines.

    The technology may be challenging to master and expensive to build today, but fusion promises to harness the nuclear reaction that powers the sun to generate nearly limitless energy here on Earth. If startups are able to complete commercially viable fusion power plants, then they have the potential to upend trillion-dollar markets.

    The bullish wave buoying the fusion industry has been driven by three advances: more powerful computer chips, more sophisticated AI, and powerful high-temperature superconducting magnets. Together, they have helped deliver more sophisticated reactor designs, better simulations, and more complex control schemes.

    It doesn’t hurt that, at the end of 2022, a U.S. Department of Energy lab announced that it had produced a controlled fusion reaction that produced more power than the lasers had imparted to the fuel pellet. The experiment had crossed what’s known as scientific breakeven, and while it’s still a long ways from commercial breakeven, where the reaction produces more than the entire facility consumes, it was a long-awaited step that proved the underlying science was sound.

    Founders have built on that momentum in recent years, pushing the private fusion industry forward at a rapid pace.

    Commonwealth Fusion Systems

    Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) has raised about a third of all private capital invested in fusion companies to date. Its latest round, which closed in August, added $863 million to its coffers, bringing its total raised near $3 billion.

    CFS’s Series B2 came four years after its $1.8 billion Series B, which helped catapult the company into the pole position. Since then, the startup has been hard at work in Massachusetts building Sparc, its first-of-a-kind power plant intended to produce power at what it calls “commercially relevant” levels. 

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    Sparc’s reactor is a tokamak design, which resembles a doughnut. The D-shaped cross section is wound with high-temperature superconducting tape, which, when energized, generates a powerful magnetic field that will contain and compress the superheated plasma. Heat generated from the reaction is converted to steam to power a turbine. CFS designed its magnets in collaboration with MIT, where co-founder and CEO Bob Mumgaard worked as a researcher on fusion reactor designs and high-temperature superconductors.

    The Massachusetts-based CFS expects to have Sparc operational in late 2026 or early 2027. Later this decade, the company says it will begin construction on Arc, its commercial power plant that will produce 400 megawatts of electricity. The facility will be built near Richmond, Virginia, and Google has agreed to buy half its output.

    CFS is backed by a long list of investors, including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, The Engine, Bill Gates, and others.

    TAE Technologies

    Founded in 1998, TAE Technologies (formerly known as Tri Alpha Energy) was spun out of the University of California, Irvine by Norman Rostoker. It uses a field-reversed configuration, but with a twist: after the two plasma shots collide in the middle of the reactor, the company bombards the plasma with particle beams to keep it spinning in a cigar shape. That improves the stability of the plasma, allowing more time for fusion to occur and for more heat to be extracted to spin a turbine. 

    In December 2025, TAE announced that it would merge with President Donald Trump’s social media company, Trump Media & Technology Group. The all-stock transaction would value the combined company at $6 billion. TAE would receive $200 million plus another $100 million upon filing paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission. TAE CEO Michl Binderbauer will serve as co-CEO of the combined company alongside Devin Nunes, who had been sole CEO of Trump Media.

    The fusion startup had previously raised $150 million in June from existing investors, including Google, Chevron, and New Enterprise. Before the merger, TAE had raised a total of $1.79 billion, according to PitchBook.

    Helion

    Of all fusion startups, Helion has the most aggressive timeline. The company plans to produce electricity from its reactor in 2028. Its first customer? Microsoft.

    Helion, based in Everett, Washington, uses a type of reactor called a field-reversed configuration, where magnets surround a reaction chamber that looks like an hourglass with a bulge at the point where the two sides come together. At each end of the hourglass, they spin the plasma into doughnut shapes that are shot toward each other at more than 1 million mph. When they collide in the middle, additional magnets help induce fusion. When fusion occurs, it boosts the plasma’s own magnetic field, which induces an electrical current inside the reactor’s magnetic coils. That electricity is then harvested directly from the machine.

    The company raised $425 million in January 2025, around the same time that it turned on Polaris, a prototype reactor. Helion has raised $1.03 billion, according to PitchBook. Investors include Sam Altman, Reid Hoffman, KKR, BlackRock, Peter Thiel’s Mithril Capital Management, and Capricorn Investment Group.

    Pacific Fusion

    Pacific Fusion burst out of the gate with a $900 million Series A, a whopping sum even among well-funded fusion startups. The company will use inertial confinement to achieve fusion, but instead of lasers compressing the fuel, it will use coordinated electromagnetic pulses. The trick is in the timing: All 156 impedance-matched Marx generators need to produce 2 terawatts for 100 nanoseconds, and those pulses need to simultaneously converge on the target.

    The company is led by CEO Eric Lander, the scientist who led the Human Genome Project, and president Will Regan. Pacific Fusion’s funding might be massive, but the startup hasn’t gotten it all at once. Rather, its investors will pay out in tranches when the company achieves specified milestones, an approach that’s common in biotech.

    Shine Technologies

    Shine Technologies is taking a cautious — and possibly pragmatic — approach to generating fusion power. Selling electrons from a fusion power plant is years off, so instead, it’s starting by selling neutron testing and medical isotopes. More recently, it has been developing a way to recycle radioactive waste. Shine hasn’t picked an approach for a future fusion reactor, instead saying that it’s developing necessary skills for when that time comes.

    The company has raised a total of $778 million, according to PitchBook. Investors include Energy Ventures Group, Koch Disruptive Technologies, Nucleation Capital, and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.

    General Fusion

    Now its third decade, General Fusion has raised $462.53 million, according to PitchBook. The Richmond, British Columbia-based company was founded in 2002 by physicist Michel Laberge, who wanted to prove a different approach to fusion known as magnetized target fusion (MTF). Investors include Jeff Bezos, Temasek, BDC Capital, and Chrysalix Venture Capital.

    In General Fusion’s reactor, a liquid metal wall surrounds a chamber in which plasma is injected. Pistons surrounding the wall push it inward, compressing the plasma inside and sparking a fusion reaction. The resulting neutrons heat the liquid metal, which can be circulated through a heat exchanger to generate steam to spin a turbine.

    General Fusion hit a rough patch in spring 2025. The company ran short of cash as it was building LM26, its latest device that it hoped would hit breakeven in 2026. Just days after hitting a key milestone, it laid off 25% of its staff. CEO Greg Twinney penned an open letter pleading for funding from investors. 

    In August, they delivered somewhat, injecting $22 million in a pay-to-play round that one investor called “the least amount of capital possible” to keep the General Fusion afloat. Then in November, securities filings in Canada revealed that the company had raised $51.1 million in SAFE notes from nearly 70 investors, the Globe and Mail reported. Altogether, General Fusion has raised $492 million, according to PitchBook.

    Tokamak Energy

    Tokamak Energy takes the usual tokamak design — the doughnut shape — and squeezes it, reducing its aspect ratio to the point where the outer bounds start resembling a sphere. Like many other tokamak-based startups, the company uses high-temperature superconducting magnets (of the rare earth barium copper oxide, or REBCO, variety). Since its design is more compact than a traditional tokamak, it requires less in the way of magnets, which should reduce costs. 

    The Oxfordshire, U.K.-based startup’s ST40 prototype, which looks like a large, steampunk Fabergé egg, generated an ultra-hot, 100 million degree C plasma in 2022. Its next generation, Demo 4, is currently under construction and is intended to test the company’s magnets in “fusion power plant-relevant scenarios.” Tokamak Energy raised $125 million in November 2024 to continue its reactor design efforts and expand its magnet business.

    In total, the company has raised $336 million from investors including Future Planet Capital, In-Q-Tel, Midven, and Capri-Sun founder Hans-Peter Wild, according to PitchBook.

    Zap Energy

    Zap Energy isn’t using high-temperature superconducting magnets or super-powerful lasers to keep its plasma confined. Rather, it zaps the plasma (get it?) with an electric current, which then generates its own magnetic field. The magnetic field compresses the plasma about 1 millimeter, at which point ignition occurs. The neutrons released by the fusion reaction bombard a liquid metal blanket that surrounds the reactor, heating it up. The liquid metal is then cycled through a heat exchanger, where it produces steam to drive a turbine.

    Like Helion, Zap Energy is based in Everett, Washington, and the company has raised $327 million, according to PitchBook. Backers include Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures, DCVC, Lowercarbon, Energy Impact Partners, Chevron Technology Ventures, and Bill Gates as an angel.

    Proxima Fusion

    Most investors have favored large startups that are pursuing tokamak designs or some flavor of inertial confinement. But stellarators have shown great promise in scientific experiments, including the Wendelstein 7-X reactor in Germany.

    Proxima Fusion is bucking the trend, though, having attracted a €130 million Series A that brings its total raised to more than €185 million. Investors include Balderton Capital and Cherry Ventures.

    Stellarators are similar to tokamaks in that they confine plasma in a ring-like shape using powerful magnets. But they do it with a twist — literally. Rather than force plasma into a human-designed ring, stellarators twist and bulge to accommodate the plasma’s quirks. The result should be a plasma that remains stable for longer, increasing the chances of fusion reactions.

    Kyoto Fusioneering

    With all the startups pursuing fusion power, it was perhaps inevitable that another would pop up to develop components that round out a power plant. The so-called balance of plant, or the parts that sit outside the reactor, range from gyrotrons that heat plasma to heat extraction systems to harvest power from fusion reactions to turn it into electricity. 

    Kyoto Fusioneering has made an early bet that if even one fusion startup succeeds in generating enough power to sell to the grid, that the industry will need a supplier for the balance of plant and the expertise to integrate it into whichever fusion technologies win out.

    Venture capitalists appear to agree, having invested $191 million in Kyoto Fusioneering. Investors include 31Ventures, In-Q-Tel, JIC Venture Growth Investments, Mitsubishi, and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Investment.

    Marvel Fusion

    Marvel Fusion follows the inertial confinement approach, the same basic technique that the National Ignition Facility used to prove that controlled nuclear fusion reactions could produce more power than was needed to kick them off. Marvel fires powerful lasers at a target embedded with silicon nanostructures that cascade under the bombardment, compressing the fuel to the point of ignition. Because the target is made using silicon, it should be relatively simple to manufacture, leaning on the semiconductor manufacturing industry’s decades of experience.

    The inertial confinement fusion startup is building a demonstration facility in collaboration with Colorado State University, which it expects to have operational by 2027. Munich-based Marvel has raised a total of $162 million from investors including b2venture, Deutsche Telekom, Earlybird, and HV Capital with Taavet Hinrikus and Albert Wenger as angels.

    First Light Fusion

    Unlike many other fusion startups, First Light Fusion doesn’t use magnets to generate the conditions necessary for fusion. Instead, it follows an approach known as inertial confinement, in which fusion fuel pellets are compressed until they ignite. 

    But even then, First Light doesn’t hew to orthodoxy. Most attempts at inertial confinement use lasers to do the dirty work, following the lead of the National Ignition Facility, which produced a groundbreaking experiment in 2022. Rather, First Light fires a projectile at a target using a two-stage gun; the first stage uses gunpowder to fire a plastic piston that compresses hydrogen to 145,000 psi, which then launches the projectile. The target is designed to amplify the force of the impact so it compresses the fuel to the point of ignition.

    In March 2025, First Light announced that it would not pursue building its own power plant, instead offering its core technologies to other companies to build one. A spokesperson for First Light said that it is planning to build “pulsed power capability that would act as our demonstrator plant but would have other science and defense applications.” In other words, the company was dropping its plans for a power plan in a quest for revenue.

    Based in Oxfordshire, UK, First Light has raised $108 million from investors including Invesco, IP Group, and Tencent, according to PitchBook.

    Xcimer

    Though nothing about fusion can be described as simple, Xcimer takes a relatively straightforward approach: follow the basic science that’s behind the National Ignition Facility’s breakthrough net-positive experiment, and redesign the technology that underpins it from the ground up. The Colorado-based startup is aiming for a 10-megajoule laser system, five times more powerful than NIF’s setup that made history. Molten salt walls surround the reaction chamber, absorbing heat and protecting the first solid wall from damage.

    Founded in January 2022, Xcimer has already raised $100 million, according to PitchBook, from investors including Hedosophia, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Emerson Collective, Gigascale Capital, and Lowercarbon Capital.

    This story was originally published in September 2024 and will be continually updated.

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    Tim De Chant

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  • Best Apple Watch apps for boosting your productivity | TechCrunch

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    The Apple Watch helps people track their health and fitness, but it can also be a great tool to help people stay productive and get work done. This is especially true for people who get easily distracted by their phone.

    Although the Apple Watch comes with simple built-in productivity apps like Reminders and Calendar, it’s worth exploring some third-party apps that are designed to boost productivity by offering additional functionality. 

    Todoist

    Image Credits:Todoist

    Todoist is a great app for managing tasks on your Apple Watch when you don’t want to pull out your iPhone. The app lets you create and manage tasks, organize these tasks into projects, mark them as complete, and also set reminders. You can add tasks via voice command or the keyboard. 

    The app is great for people who prefer to quickly glance at their wrist instead of pulling out their phone when doing things, like looking at a grocery list at the store or jotting down a quick note or reminder. 

    You can stay updated on the progress of your tasks for the day straight from your Apple Watch’s face. For instance, you can choose to have your next task or the completed percentage of tasks for the day displayed. 

    Todoist is free and offers a $4 monthly subscription if you want additional features like custom task reminders, an AI assistant, a calendar layout, and more.

    Drafts

    Image Credits:Drafts

    Since the Apple Watch doesn’t have a Notes app, Drafts is a good app for those who want a digital notepad without a phone. You can capture notes through voice command, the watchOS Scribble feature, or the keyboard. 

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    Your drafts inbox syncs from your iPhone and displays the number of drafts you have, while also showing the number of flagged drafts, so you can quickly access important ones. 

    The app defaults to a blank note to give you a place to quickly enter an idea without interrupting your thought process. You can file notes into a folder to organize your thoughts or just have a free-flowing canvas. 

    The app is free and offers a $1.99 monthly subscription if you want access to additional functionality, such as themes and the ability to send your emails to the app. 

    Focus

    Image Credits:Focus

    Focus is a good app for people who want a productivity timer to help them get work done and like to complete tasks one at a time. The app is designed to break down your work time into smaller chunks, which it calls “Focus Sessions.” By working in sessions, you can stay focused on the task at hand before moving on to the next task. 

    By using your Apple Watch instead of your phone to stay focused, you can minimize distractions. You can quickly glance at your wrist to see how much time is left in your Focus Session and then get right back to work. Focus will also encourage you to take breaks between your sessions. 

    The app is available for $7.99 per month. 

    AutoSleep

    Image Credits:AutoSleep

    AutoSleep is one of the most popular Apple Watch apps for tracking your sleep, and that’s for good reason. The app gives you an informative look at your sleep quality, heart rate, sleep consistency, and more. It can help you track the time it takes you to fall asleep and measure the efficiency of your sleep. 

    AutoSleep shows you all of this data through a clock view with sleep rings to give you a quick overview of your stats in a way that’s similar to your Watch’s Activity Rings. You can see if you’re getting enough sleep or if you need to try to sleep more. 

    The app also shows you a “readiness” score that estimates how mentally and physically ready you are for the day ahead based on how you slept, which resembles how the Oura Ring’s app tackles the same metric. It can also suggest the best time for you to go to bed to ensure you catch up on sleep. 

    You can get access to the app for a one-time fee of $5.99. 

    Streaks

    Image Credits:Streaks

    Streaks is a good app for people who want to form good habits and track their progress. Each day that you complete a task, your streak is extended. If you break the chain, your streak resets to zero. You can track up to 24 habits, such as flossing your teeth, practicing a new language, and eating healthy. 

    The app also lets you track tasks that aren’t meant to occur every day, too. For instance, you may want to set a task of walking to work from Monday to Friday, going to the gym three days a week, or avoiding junk food over the weekend. 

    A quick glance at your Apple Watch lets you quickly see which tasks you still need to complete for the day, see your progress, and mark tasks as completed.

    The app is available for a one-time fee of $5.99.

    Fantastical 

    Image Credits:Fantastical

    Fantastical is a great calendar app that can help you stay organized right from your Apple Watch. You can use the app to create events and set reminders that you can view with a quick glance. 

    The Apple Watch app has three views that you can choose from. The “Up Next” view gives you a quick overview of your next appointment alongside the current weather. The “List” view shows you any events and tasks that you have coming up over the next few days, alongside the expected weather forecast. The “Tasks” view compiles all of your tasks into one view and allows you to check them off with a quick tap. 

    The app also lets you receive alerts for upcoming events and tasks. If you want this information on your watch face, Fantastical’s Smart Stack widget gives you a quick peek at your calendar.

    Fantastical costs $4.99 per month.

    Things 3

    Image Credits:Things 3

    Things 3 is a great productivity manager that can help you create to-do lists, manage projects, and track progress toward your goals. It can be used to organize your personal, work, financial, and other aspects of your life into special “Areas.”

    The app features reminders, a calendar integration, widgets, tags to categorize your to-do lists, and more. Things 3 also lets you automatically repeat to-dos on a schedule you set and has a special place for evening plans under the “This Evening” section.

    As the day goes on, you can quickly check off things from your wrist and add new ones on the go.

    You can get Things 3 for a one-time payment of $9.99.

    Structured

    Image Credits:Structured

    Structured is a simple app that helps you plan your day by combining your calendar, to-do list, habit tacker, reminders, and routines into a single timeline.

    You can navigate through your structured timeline on your wrist to see your upcoming tasks and stay on top of your routine without having to pull out your phone. The app lets you store thoughts and quickly capture notes in your Inbox to sort them later. You can also break down bigger projects with “sub-tasks.”

    Structured also lets you personalize your different tasks with various icons and colors to visually organize your to-do list. Structured syncs with your Mac, iPhone, and iPad as well.

    Structured’s basic features are available for free, but you can pay a $6.49 monthly fee to unlock additional features, such as the ability to use AI to draft and plan tasks.

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    Aisha Malik

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  • As people look for ways to make new friends, here are the apps promising to help | TechCrunch

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    In recent years, people have been increasingly looking for new ways to form platonic connections, as loneliness and social isolation have become more prevalent.

    In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General went so far as to label this issue a public health crisis. Remote workers, who miss the everyday interactions found in an office, and younger individuals eager to create their adult social circles based on shared interests and hobbies, are among those seeking meaningful friendships.

    Thanks to online dating apps, the stigma associated with finding connections online has largely faded away. This has welcomed a new wave of apps focused on fostering friendships and building local communities.

    According to estimates from Appfigures, over a dozen local-focused friendship apps have collectively generated approximately $16 million in consumer spending in the U.S. so far this year. Some notable examples include Timeleft, Meet5, and Bumble’s BFF. Additionally, these apps have garnered approximately 4.3 million downloads thus far in 2025.

    The apps aim to provide a less awkward solution than, for instance, approaching a stranger at the gym or local café and trying to strike up a conversation. These platforms clearly indicate that everyone using the app is looking for the same thing — friendship, not romance — making it much less intimidating to initiate conversations.

    From major players like Meetup to newer ones like 222, there are plenty of apps that cater to the growing demand for meaningful friendships. We’ve compiled a list of them for you to try out.

    222

    Image Credits:222 (screenshot)

    The app 222 is an iOS-only social events platform that facilitates in-person meetups by pairing a group of strangers based on their personality test results. The app sends invitations to nearby public social events, such as wine bars and comedy clubs. There is then a vetting process, and selected participants are notified on the day of the event. A bonus for those who feel socially anxious: You’re allowed to bring a plus-one. 

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    The service charges a $22.22 curation fee or a monthly subscription for the same price.

    BFF

    Image Credits:Bumble

    Dating giant Bumble is among the more established players to enter the friendship space, launching its friend-finding feature in 2016, which then spun out into a stand-alone app in 2023. The friend-making app has recently undergone a significant redesign, with an increased emphasis on facilitating group meetups, catering to users’ desires to grow their social circles.

    BFF is available for free download on iOS and Android devices.

    Clyx

    Image Credits:Clyx

    Clyx is another emerging app in the group-based social networking landscape, with a strong focus on discovering local events. The social platform helps users find community events by integrating data from platforms like Ticketmaster and TikTok. Additionally, Clyx allows users to upload their contact lists, helping them see which events their friends plan to attend. The app also includes a feature that recommends other users to connect with at these events.

    As of now, Clyx operates exclusively in two cities: Miami and London. However, it has plans to expand to additional areas in the near future, with New York City and São Paulo at the top of the list. The app is available on the App Store and Google Play Store.

    Les Amís

    Image Credits:Les Amis

    Les Amís is a friendship app tailored for women, transgender, and LGBTQ+ individuals that leverages AI to match users based on similar interests and encourages participation in local events, such as pottery classes, book clubs, and wine tastings. Matches are made every Monday, allowing users to chat and plan meetups later in the week. 

    Available on iOS and Android, Les Amís serves cities across Europe, including Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Madrid, Paris, and Stockholm. In the U.S., the app is available in Austin and New York, with plans to expand to Boston, Miami, and Los Angeles.

    The app uses a paid membership model that varies by city, with fees of $70 in New York and €55 in Amsterdam.

    Meetup

    Image Credits:Meetup

    The local event-discovery platform has been around since 2002, helping millions of users connect with others who share similar interests. Users can RSVP to events; join groups that cater to a variety of hobbies, professions, or social causes; and create their own groups and events. They can also chat with group members and post updates and photos from gatherings. 

    Meet5

    Image Credits:Meet5

    This European community-building app recently launched in the U.S., targeting users over 40 who want to meet new people in their area and participate in group activities such as picnics, concerts, and hiking. Notably, in a short time, there have been around 777,000 U.S. downloads so far across the App Store and Google Play Store, according to Appfigures estimates.

    Pie

    Image Credits:Pie

    Pie is another one of the newer social apps on the market. It features an AI-driven quiz designed to predict which users are most likely to be compatible with each other. Each person who RSVPs to a Pie event takes a brief personality assessment, and the algorithm organizes attendees into groups of six, who are then added to a group chat within the Pie app, allowing them to interact with each other before the event.

    Currently, the app is only available in Austin, Chicago, and San Francisco. Users can download Pie from the App Store and Google Play Store.

    Timeleft

    Image Credits:Timeleft

    Timeleft is a relatively new platform that helps you organize weekly dinner dates with groups of strangers. The app uses a special algorithm to match you with others, taking into account your age, gender, and personality. Users are matched with four other people, but they only learn minor details about them the night before, including their occupations and zodiac signs.

    Dinners take place at a selected restaurant on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 p.m. To help everyone break the ice, the app offers a game with conversation starters. After dinner, there is an after-party at a local bar.

    Users can book dinners online or through the app. In terms of pricing, it varies depending on the country and restaurant. Users pay for a ticket up front and are responsible for covering their own dinner and drinks. 

    Wyzr Friends

    Image Credits:Wzyr Friends

    Wyzr Friends is an activity-based friendship app designed for adults 40 and older, catering to empty nesters, those who are divorced, and other users seeking to connect with like-minded individuals. Users can thumbs up or down potential friends and arrange in-person activities based on shared interests, such as going to the movies or hiking. 

    It’s available on iOS and Android devices in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Ireland, the Philippines, Singapore, and Mexico.

    Mmotion

    Mmotion
    Image Credits:Mmotion (Image has been modified)

    Mmotion is a newly launched friendship app that blends location tracking with social discovery to help users connect with people nearby and explore new bars and restaurants in their area. Upon joining, users can participate in interest-based groups—such as hiking, basketball, or art—view a map of active users, and send messages to those nearby. The app also highlights new places on the map, making it easy to find a restaurant or venue to try.

    Mmotion is currently only available to users in New York City on iOS and Android devices. Users must first submit an application to be considered.

    This story was updated after publication.

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    Lauren Forristal

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  • Elevate your home bar with these mixology gadgets | TechCrunch

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    While a shaker, some mixing tools and ice can do the job just fine, modern tech has enabled the invention of some impressive gadgets that can spritz up your home bartending game.

    From machines that can prepare cocktails in seconds to smart coasters that ensure the perfect pour, here’s a rundown of some devices you should consider adding to your bar.

    Bartesian Cocktail Maker – $349

    Image Credits:Bartesian

    Pressing a button to summon cocktails might sound like the stuff of sci-fi, but they’re already here.

    Bartesian’s cocktail maker is one of the more popular robotic bartenders on the market, and can prepare cocktails on demand in about 30 seconds. Fill the machine with your spirit of choice in the designated reservoirs, then insert a cocktail capsule (an eight-pack costs around $20 and makes eight drinks) containing a mix of juices, bitters and extracts.

    Use the touchscreen to adjust your preferred strength from mocktail to strong, then press mix.

    iGulu – $549

    Image Credits:iGulu

    I’ve no doubt beer lovers will agree that there’s no matching the experience of sipping on a beer you’ve made yourself. iGulu’s automated beer brewer takes the drudgery out of the entire process, as it works with pre-packaged ingredient kits that include everything you need: extracts, hops, bitters, dry yeast, and ground grains. Just pour in the contents and add water. Even complete beginners can start brewing right away.

    Each kit is designed to brew one gallon, or eight pints. The fermentation takes 7 to 13 days, depending on the recipe. The built-in container keeps your beer cold and fresh for at least 30 days.

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    You can also connect the brewer to an app to monitor fermentation time, carbonation levels, and adjust the temperature as needed.

    The device is surprisingly versatile, too: Besides beer, the iGulu can also be used to make hard apple cider, kombucha, fruit wine, and non-alcoholic beverages like fermented tea, sparkling water, and even yogurt.

    Barsys Smart Coaster – $69

    Image Credits:Barsys

    From the folks who created a $1,500 robot bartender, the Barsys Coaster offers a more budget-friendly option for anyone learning how to avoid overpouring when making cocktails.

    This smart coaster aims to help you prepare a well-blended beverage by lighting up to indicate when to start and stop pouring each ingredient. Simply connect it to the Barsys app, select a recipe, place a cup on the coaster, and follow the step-by-step guide.

    Smokpub Electric Smoker – $55

    Image Credits:SmokPub

    Want to get fancy and serve smoked cocktails? Even if you don’t, a cocktail and whiskey smoker is a fun gadget to have.

    This one from Smokpub allows you to add smoky flavors to your drinks without using open flames. Simply load it with wood chips — available flavors include oak, apple, hickory, cherry, pear, and beech — put it on your glass with the safety cover, press the electric ignition, and let the smoke infuse your drink.

    SipVault Smart Liquor Dispenser – $55.95

    Image Credits:SipVault

    This may not be the fanciest pick on the list, but an automatic dispenser is a practical choice for pouring drinks with consistency and avoid spills, especially when mixing multiple drinks. Now that the holidays are upon us, this may prove handy if you want to avoid clumsy hands accidentally knocking over expensive bottles at your next holiday party.

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    Lauren Forristal

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  • A DIY Wreath Made From Foraged Greenery and Berries

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    Making your own holiday wreath involves four good things: a brisk walk; a gathering of invasive plants like privet, multiflora roses, and bittersweet; a conversation—if you are brave—with a neighbor you have never met (in my case recently, this involved a trade of holly branches for me and a bottle of homemade elderberry cordial for them); and, finally, about two hours of focused attention on crafting and creativity. It is occupational therapy at its finest. Plus (five good things!) a really attractive wreath that will last for a month or more. Oh, and (six): Making your own wreath costs next to nothing.

    Here are some of the plants you can use, and the minimal equipment you will need to make your own wreath at home.

    Above: Our finished wreath on a wall.

    1. Gather your materials.

    The most effective wreath features plants that stay fresh-looking for weeks. Combining evergreens with winter berries and fruits guarantees long-lasting decoration. The plants can be foraged, if they are invasive, trimmed from your own garden, begged from your friendly neighbors, and bought from local tree vendors. You can also use trimming from your Christmas tree.

    For color in a winter wreath, nothing beats rosehips. I take this opportunity to gather as many sprays of very invasive Rosa multiflora hips as I can find. Privet fruit is at its peak in early winter, and can be collected with a clear conscience, too. Holly, juniper, cedar, pine, fir and spruce are all good options for greenery.

    In addition, you will need secateurs for cutting branches, gloves for sharp thorns, and, at home, florists’ wire for easy attachment. (A 22-gauge floral wire is easy to use and very strong.)

    Above left: Multiflora hips. Above right: Gloves are helpful when you work with holly, the prettiest and prickliest.
    Above: The stems of mugwort make a very good wreath frame.

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  • A comprehensive list of 2025 tech layoffs | TechCrunch

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    The tech layoff wave is still kicking in 2025. Last year saw more than 150,000 job cuts across 549 companies, according to independent layoffs tracker Layoffs.fyi. So far this year, more than 22,000 workers have been the victim of reductions across the tech industry, with a staggering 16,084 cuts taking place in February alone.

    We’re tracking layoffs in the tech industry in 2025 so you can see the trajectory of the cutbacks and understand the impact on innovation across all types of companies. As businesses continue to embrace AI and automation, this tracker serves as a reminder of the human impact of layoffs — and what could be at stake with increased innovation.

    Below you’ll find a comprehensive list of all the known tech layoffs that have occurred in 2025, which will be updated regularly. If you have a tip on a layoff, contact us here. If you prefer to remain anonymous, you can contact us here.

    December

    Payoneer

    Will let go of about 30 employees in Israel and a similar number of staff overseas, bringing the total reduction to roughly 6% of its global workforce.

    VSCO

    Laid off 24 employees as part of a restructuring to refocus on tools for professional photographers. In an internal memo seen by TechCrunch, CEO Eric Wittman said that consumer demand fell short and recent expansion efforts didn’t deliver as hoped.

    Mobileye

    Is reportedly cutting 200 employees, about 4% of its global workforce. With over 3,000 of its 4,300 employees based in Israel, most of the cuts will affect its local teams.

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    Inside Inbound Health

    Shut down on December 1, according to an audio recording obtained by Axios Pro. The hospital-at-home startup had raised more than $50 million.

    November

    Intel

    The company continued with its stated goal of cutting a significant amount of its workforce this year, with 59 Bay Area jobs eliminated effective November 30, in a Employment Development Department filing caught by KRON4.

    HP

    Is reportedly set to cut 4,000 to 6,000 jobs worldwide by 2028 as it looks to streamline operations and leverage AI to speed up product development and boost efficiency.

    Apple

    Is cutting several sales positions handling accounts ranging from business and schools to government agencies, as it moves to streamline how it sells devices and services to businesses, schools, and government agencies, Bloomberg reports.

    Monarch Tractor

    Told employees it may lay off more than 100 workers or even shut down, according to an internal memo obtained by TechCrunch. This comes after weeks of staff cuts across the autonomous electric tractor startup’s California offices and its teams in India and Singapore.

    Playtika

    Announced plans to lay off about 20% of its workforce, 700 to 800 employees, next month, marking its fifth round of cuts since 2022, according to Calcalist. The Nasdaq-listed gaming company, valued at $1.5 billion, employs about 3,500 people.

    Pipe

    Has laid off about 200 employees, roughly half its workforce, per Fintech Business Weekly. The revenue-based small business lender, once valued at $2 billion, said the cuts are part of its push toward profitability and greater operational efficiency.

    Synopsys

    Plans to cut roughly 10% of its workforce and close several sites as part of a restructuring tied to its recent acquisition of Ansys, The Wall Street Journal reported. The layoffs, which are expected to affect about 2,000 employees, are scheduled to take place during fiscal 2026, which began November 1.

    Deepwatch

    Has laid off between 60 and 80 employees, citing artificial intelligence as one of the factors behind the decision, TechCrunch reported. The cybersecurity firm, which builds an AI-powered threat detection and response platform, employs roughly 250 people.

    Axonius

    Is reportedly cutting roughly 10% of its staff, notifying employees in early November that about 100 of its 900 workers will be laid off. The New York–based cybersecurity firm says the move aims to streamline operations.

    MyBambu

    Is set to permanently close its local operations, laying off all 141 employees in two waves, according to a filing with the Florida Department of Commerce. The Florida-headquartered fintech company’s first 100 employees were let go on October 31, with the remaining 41 slated for termination by December 31.

    Hewlett-Packard

    Is removing 52 positions at its San Jose campus, according to reporting from the San Francisco Chronicle. The layoffs, which began last month and will continue through November, affect employees across cloud development, engineering, and product management.

    October

    Amazon

    After Reuters reported that the company was planning to eliminate up to 30,000 corporate jobs, amounting to roughly 10% of its 350,000 employees in their corporate departments, Amazon shared that it would pursue an “overall reduction in our corporate workforce of approximately 14,000 roles.” Since that news broke, Amazon has laid off 660 employees across multiple New York City offices, with more to come through the year.

    Rivian

    Is cutting 600 jobs, about 4% of its workforce, amid an EV market pullback, marking its third layoff this year. Details of the latest layoffs remain undisclosed, while earlier cuts in June and September affected 100 to 150 employees in its commercial and manufacturing teams.

    Meta

    Has laid off approximately 600 employees across its AI infrastructure units, including the Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) team and other product-related roles. However, top-tier AI hires in TBD Labs, managed by new chief AI officer Alexandr Wang, will not be affected.

    Applied Materials

    Plans to cut about 4% of its workforce, or roughly 1,400 jobs, to streamline operations amid tighter U.S. semiconductor export controls.

    Handshake

    Laid off around 100 employees in October, about 15% of its 650-person U.S. workforce. The layoffs affected various roles across its recruiting business vertical. The San Francisco-based startup is an online platform connecting college students and recent graduates with employers for early-career jobs.

    Smartsheet

    Has reportedly laid off over 120 employees amid a leadership transition following CEO Mark Mader’s retirement. The enterprise software company, which grew to more than 3,300 employees, was acquired for $8.4 billion by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners earlier this year, taking it private.

    Google

    Has cut over 100 design roles in its cloud division, hitting U.S.-based teams especially hard, as the company shifts focus toward AI investments, per a CNBC report. Many affected employees have until early December to find a new role within Google, following additional layoffs across its Silicon Valley offices, including at least 50 permanent cuts in Sunnyvale.

    Paycom

    Is reportedly laying off over 500 employees due to AI and automation improving back-office efficiencies. The Oklahoma City-based HR and payroll software company will provide affected workers with severance packages, outplacement services, and access to internal job opportunities.

    September

    Just Eat

    Will eliminate around 450 jobs as part of a cost and operations review, according to Reuters. The layoffs will span multiple functions and countries, including customer service and sales. Europe’s largest food delivery company said it is increasingly using automation and AI, shifting many manual service tasks to automated systems.

    Fiverr

    Plans to cut around 250 jobs, approximately 30% of its workforce, as part of a push to become a leaner, faster, and AI-focused company, according to The Wall Street Journal. The Tel Aviv-headquartered freelance services marketplace said the restructuring will reduce management layers and position it to pursue growth with an AI-native approach.

    ZipRecruiter

    Is closing its Tel Aviv development center, cutting about 80 jobs. Led by Yosi Taguri, the office specialized in software, data, and AI research, including algorithm development. The California-based recruitment firm, founded in 2010, is trimming costs amid a challenging labor market.

    GupShup

    Has laid off at least 100 employees, including junior developers, just months after cutting nearly 200 jobs. The San Francisco-based conversational AI company, which is preparing for an IPO within two years, raised $60 million in equity and debt in July.

    xAI

    Laid off about a third of its data annotation team, cutting roughly 500 jobs, according to Business Insider. The move comes as the company shifts focus from generalist AI tutors to specialist roles, after testing workers to assess their strengths. Employees were told they’ll be paid through the end of their contracts — or November 30 at the latest — but their system access was cut immediately, Business Insider reports.

    Rivian

    Has reportedly laid off about 200 workers, or 1.5% of its staff, as the company braces for the end of federal EV tax credits under President Trump’s policy changes. The $7,500 incentive for new electric cars expires this month, adding to pressure from cooling demand. Despite the cuts, Rivian says it’s moving ahead with plans for a lower-cost model.

    Oracle

    Is cutting another 101 jobs in Seattle and 254 in San Francisco, just weeks after a wave of layoffs in August. The company, which had about 3,900 local employees before the cuts, hasn’t explained the move and declined to comment.

    Salesforce

    Is trimming another 262 jobs at its San Francisco headquarters, according to a state filing, with layoffs set to take effect November 3. The move comes just weeks after CEO Marc Benioff touted AI’s potential to cut customer support roles and follows a smaller round of cuts in Seattle and Bellevue earlier this month.

    August

    Cisco

    Will eliminate 221 positions across its Milpitas and San Francisco offices, including 157 in Santa Clara County and 64 in San Francisco, effective October 13, according to filings with California’s Employment Development Department reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. The cuts are part of the company’s broader workforce-reduction strategy.

    Restaurant365

    Laid off about 100 employees last month, around 9% of its workforce, after falling short of ambitious growth targets. The cuts affected staff across all departments. The company provides back-office software for restaurant chains.

    Oracle

    Is set to cut 101 jobs at its Santa Clara location, with notices issued on August 13 and terminations effective October 13. The company, which recently disclosed nearly 200 layoffs at its Pleasanton and Redwood City offices, is also planning to lay off 161 employees in Seattle, according to filings with the Washington state Employment Security Department.

    F5

    Is cutting 106 positions at its Seattle and Liberty Lake, Washington, offices, according to a state Employment Security Department filing. The layoffs, which affected senior engineers and managers, are part of a broader global workforce reduction, although the security and application delivery company has not disclosed the total number of employees affected.

    Peloton

    Will cut 6% of its workforce in its sixth layoff in just over a year. Peloton CEO Peter Stern said the cuts are needed to improve long-term business health.

    Kaltura

    Is cutting 10% of its workforce, or about 70 employees, as part of a cost-saving effort to reduce operating expenses by $8.5 million, marking its third round of layoffs since 2022. The corporate video software company plans to maintain and gradually grow its sales and marketing budgets, driven by a robust pipeline and growing adoption of its AI-powered offerings.

    Yotpo

    Is laying off about 200 employees, roughly 34% of its global workforce, as it shuts down its email and SMS marketing operations. The Israeli-founded unicorn is partnering with Attentive and Omnisend to continue supporting marketing services while investing in AI-powered tools like automated review summaries, smart sorting, and a new Loyalty Tiers system.

    Windsurf

    Laid off 30 employees and is now offering buyouts to the remaining 200. The AI coding startup recently acquired by Cognition has had a rocky stretch, including a near-acquisition by OpenAI and a reverse-acqui-hire by Google that saw key talent depart before Cognition stepped in. Despite initial promises to value Windsurf’s team, the deal now looks more focused on the startup’s intellectual property than its people.

    Wondery

    Is cutting 100 jobs, and its CEO, Jen Sargent, is departing. Amazon is reorganizing its audio operations, moving Wondery’s audio-only podcasts under Audible and placing video-focused shows into a new Creator Services division. Amazon acquired Wondery in 2020.

    July

    Atlassian

    Has cut 150 roles in customer service and support, following enhancements to its platform and tools that have significantly reduced support needs. The decision came via a prerecorded message from CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes, just hours before co-founder Scott Farquhar urged Australia to embrace an “AI revolution” and move beyond “jobs of the past” in an Australian Press Club address. The Australian software firm was founded 2002.

    Consensys

    Is cutting about 7% of its workforce, or 47 employees, as part of a push toward profitability, Bloomberg reports. The decision follows the recent acquisition of a startup with around 30 staff, who will stay on with the company. Despite the cuts, the blockchain software company that operates the popular digital wallet MetaMask says it will continue hiring for select roles.

    Zeen

    Is shutting down operations, per a report by Business Insider. The social collaging platform aimed at creators was founded in 2019 and raised $9 million in funding. Its closure highlights the persistent challenges social media startups face in building user bases and achieving long-term growth.

    Scale AI

    Is laying off around 200 employees — roughly 14% of its workforce — and severing ties with 500 global contractors. The cuts come just weeks after Meta brought in the data-labeling startup’s CEO in a $14.3 billion deal.

    Lenovo

    Plans to cut more than 100 U.S. full-time jobs, about 3% of its workforce, including positions at its Morrisville, North Carolina, campus. As of February 2024, the PC maker employed around 5,100 workers in the U.S.

    Intel

    Is reportedly planning to lay off nearly 2,400 workers in Oregon, which is almost five times more than what was announced earlier this week. Last week, Intel announced that it will lay off more than 500 employees in Oregon, which is about 20% of its workforce, per Bloomberg.  

    Indeed + Glassdoor

    Plan to eliminate approximately 1,300 jobs combined as part of a larger restructuring effort to combine their operations and focus on AI. The layoff will mostly affect employees in the U.S., particularly in the R&D, HR, and sustainability teams, according to an internal memo by Hisayuki “Deko” Idekoba, the CEO of Recruit Holdings, which is the Japanese parent company of Indeed and Glassdoor.

    Eigen Lab

    Has laid off 29 employees as part of its reorganization, per a report by Blockworks. The Seattle-based research and engineering startup recently launched EigenCloud, a platform that provides blockchain-level trust guarantees for any Web 2.0 or web3 application. The reduction will affect 25% of the company’s workforce. Eigen Labs said it had raised $70 million in tokens from a16z Crypto in June.

    Microsoft

    Will cut 9,000 employees, which is less than 4% of its global workforce across teams, role types, and geographies. The reduction follows a series of layoffs earlier this year: It cut less than 1% of the headcount in January, more than 6,000 in May, and at least 300 in June.

    ByteDance

    Is laying off 65 employees in Bellevue, Washington, according to media reports. The parent company of TikTok arrived in Seattle in 2021 and has been expanding its presence there by growing its TikTok Shop online shopping division.

    June

    TomTom

    Announced on June 30 that the company is cutting 300 jobs, or 10% of its workforce, as part of organizational restructuring within its sales and support divisions amid the AI shift. The startup is an Amsterdam-based location tech startup that provides navigation and mapping products.

    Rivian

    Has reduced its headcount by approximately 140 employees, accounting for roughly 1% of its total workforce. The recent layoffs mostly affected Rivian’s manufacturing team.

    Bumble

    Announced in an SEC filing that it will cut approximately 240 jobs, or 30% of its workforce, to enhance operational efficiency and allocate the resulting savings to the development of new products and technologies, according to a CNBC report. The layoff will help the online dating app save $40 million annually, per the report.

    Klue

    Has reportedly laid off 85 employees, which accounts for approximately 40% of its workforce. The Vancouver-based startup sells software products that use artificial intelligence for business intelligence. It helps sales professionals at tech companies gather information on competitors to improve their sales.

    Google

    Has downsized its smart TV division by 25% of its 300-member team to adjust its strategy, per reports. Funding for the smart TV division, including Google TV and Android TV, has been cut by 10%, but investment in AI projects has been raised.

    Intel

    Says that it plans to lay off 15% to 20% of workers in its Intel Foundry division starting in July. Intel Foundry designs, manufactures, and packages semiconductors for external clients. Intel’s total workforce was 108,900 people as of December 2024, according to the company’s annual regulatory filing. It also confirmed to TechCrunch that it plans to wind down its auto business.

    Playtika

    Announced that it is letting go of around 90 employees, with 40 in Israel and 50 in Poland. The most recent round of job cuts comes after the Israel-based gaming company laid off 50 employees a few weeks ago.

    Airtime

    Has let go of around 25 employees from the 58-person team, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. Evernote’s founder Phil Libin launched the video startup in 2020, offering Airtime Creator and Airtime Camera.

    Microsoft

    Is laying off more employees, just a few weeks after announcing a job cut of over 6,500 in May, which was around 3% of its global workforce. The most recent layoffs affected software engineers, product managers, technical program managers, marketers, and legal counsels.

    May

    Hims & Hers

    Plans to downsize its workforce by letting go of 68 employees, approximately 4% of its total staff, per Reuters. The San Francisco telehealth platform said that its layoffs were unrelated to a U.S. ban on producing large quantities of the weight-loss drug Wegovy. The startup said it intends to keep on recruiting employees who fit in with its long-term expansion plans.

    Amazon

    Is reportedly laying off around 100 employees from its devices and services division, which encompasses various businesses like the Alexa voice assistant, Echo smart speakers, Ring video doorbells, and Zoox robotaxis. The company has reduced its workforce by approximately 27,000 since the start of 2022 to cut costs.

    Microsoft

    Will cut over 6,500 jobs, affecting 3% of its worldwide workforce. As of June, the Seattle-headquartered company had a total of 228,000 employees globally. It would be one of the company’s biggest layoffs since it cut 10,000 employees in 2023.

    Chegg

    Reportedly plans to let go of 248 employees, or about 22% of its workforce, to reduce expenses and improve efficiency, it said. The San Francisco-based edtech startup, which offers textbook rentals and tutoring services, has seen a drop in web traffic for months as students opt for AI tools instead of traditional edtech platforms.

    Match

    Is reducing its workforce by 13% as part of a reorganization that aims to reduce costs, shore up margins, and streamline its organizational structure.

    CrowdStrike

    Is laying off 5% of its global workforce, or around 500 people. The company said the layoffs were part of “a strategic plan (the ‘Plan’) to evolve its operations to yield greater efficiencies as the Company continues to scale its business with focus and discipline to meet its goal of $10 billion in ending [Annual Recurring Revenue]” in its 8-K filing.

    General Fusion

    Has cut roughly 25% of its current workforce. The Vancouver-based company, which is developing a technology to generate fusion energy, has raised $440 million from investors, including Jeff Bezos, Temasek, and BDC Capital.

    Deep Instinct

    Reduced its headcount by 20 employees, accounting for 10% of its total workforce. In April 2023, the Israeli cybersecurity startup had previously laid off a similar number of employees during a round of layoffs.

    Beam

    Has shut down its operations months after announcing major expansion plans, per Sifted. The British climate startup has let go of approximately 200 employees, according to a LinkedIn post by James Reynolds, the head of talent.

    April

    NetApp

    Is reportedly eliminating 700 jobs, affecting 6% of its total workforce, as it reorganizes for its operational efficiency. The company, based in San Francisco, provides data storage, cloud services, and CloudOps solutions for businesses.

    Electronic Arts

    Is reportedly letting go of approximately 300 to 400 employees, including around 100 at Respawn Entertainment, to focus on its “long-term strategic priorities,” according to Bloomberg.

    Expedia

    Is laying off around 3% of its employees as part of its restructuring. The job cuts will mainly affect midlevel positions in the product and technology teams. The latest round of layoffs comes after the company let go of hundreds of employees from its marketing team globally in early March.

    Cars24

    Has reduced its workforce by about 200 employees in its product and technology divisions as part of a restructuring measure. The India-based e-commerce platform for pre-owned vehicles provides a range of services like buying and selling pre-owned cars, financing, insurance, driver-on-demand, and more. In 2023, the SoftBank-backed startup raised $450 million at a valuation of $3.3 billion.

    Meta

    Is letting go of over 100 employees in its Reality Labs division, which manages virtual reality and wearable technology, according to The Verge. The job cuts affect employees developing VR experiences for Meta’s Quest headsets and staff working on hardware operations to streamline similar work between the two teams.

    Intel

    Announced its plan to lay off more than 21,000 employees, or roughly 20% of its workforce, in April. The move comes ahead of Intel’s Q1 earnings call helmed by recently appointed CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who took over from longtime chief Pat Gelsinger last year.

    GM

    Is laying off 200 people at its Factory Zero in Detroit and Hamtramck facility in Michigan, which produces GM’s electric vehicles. The cuts come amid the EV slowdown and is not caused by tariffs, according to a report.

    Zopper

    Has reportedly let go of around 100 employees since the start of 2025. Earlier this week, about 50 employees from the tech and product teams were let go in the latest round of job cuts. The India-based insurtech startup has raised a total of $125 million to date.

    Turo

    Will reduce its workforce by 150 positions following its decision not to proceed with its IPO, per Bloomberg. The San Francisco-based car rental startup, which had about 1,000 staff in 2024, said the layoffs will bolster its long-term growth plans during economic uncertainty.

    GupShup

    Laid off roughly 200 employees to improve efficiency and profitability. It’s the startup’s second round of layoffs in five months, following the job cuts of around 300 employees in December. The conversational AI company, backed by Tiger Global and Fidelity, was last valued at $1.4 billion in 2021. The startup is based in San Francisco and operates in India.

    Forto

    Has reportedly eliminated 200 jobs, affecting around one-third of its employees. The German logistics startup reduced a significant number of sales staff.

    Wicresoft

    Will stop its operations in China, affecting around 2,000 employees. The move came after Microsoft decided to end outsourcing after-sales support to Wicresoft amid increasing trade tensions. Wicresoft, Microsoft’s first joint venture in China, was founded in 2022 and operates in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. It has over 10,000 employees.

    Five9

    Plans to cut 123 jobs, affecting about 4% of its workforce, according to a report by MarketWatch. The software company prioritizes key strategic areas like artificial intelligence for profitable growth.

    Google

    Has laid off hundreds of employees in its platforms and devices division, which covers Android, Pixel phones, the Chrome browser, and more, according to The Information.

    Microsoft

    Is contemplating additional layoffs that could happen by May, Business Insider reported, citing anonymous sources. The company is said to be discussing reducing the number of middle managers and non-coders in a bid to increase the ratio of programmers to product managers.

    Automattic

    The WordPress.com developer is laying off 16% of its workforce across departments. Before the layoffs, the company’s website showed it had 1,744 employees, so more than 270 staff may have been laid off.

    Canva

    Has let go of 10 to 12 technical writers approximately nine months after telling its employees to use generative AI tools wherever possible. The company, which had around 5,500 staff in 2024, was valued at $26 billion after a secondary stock sale in 2024.

    March

    Northvolt

    Has laid off 2,800 employees, affecting 62% of its total staff. The layoffs come weeks after the embattled Swedish battery maker filed for bankruptcy.

    Block

    Let go of 931 employees, around 8% of its workforce, as part of a reorganization, according to an internal email seen by TechCrunch. Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and CEO of the fintech company, wrote in the email that the layoffs were not for financial reasons or to replace workers with AI.

    Brightcove

    Has laid off 198 employees, who make up about two-thirds of its U.S. workforce, per a media report. The layoff comes a month after the company was acquired by Bending Spoons, an Italian app developer, for $233 million. Brightcove had 600 employees worldwide, with 300 in the U.S., as of December 2023.

    Acxiom

    Has reportedly laid off 130 employees, or 3.5% of its total workforce of 3,700 people. Acxiom is owned by IPG, and the news comes just a day after IPG and Omnicom Group shareholders approved the companies’ potential merger.

    Sequoia Capital

    Plans to close its office in Washington, D.C., and let go of its policy team there by the end of March, TechCrunch has confirmed. Sequoia opened its Washington office five years ago to deepen its relationship with policymakers. Three full-time employees are expected to be affected, per Forbes.

    Siemens

    Announced plans to let go of approximately 5,600 jobs globally in its automation and electric-vehicle charging businesses as part of efforts to improve competitiveness.

    HelloFresh

    Is reportedly laying off 273 employees, closing its distribution center in Grand Prairie, Texas, and consolidating to another site in Irving to manage the volume in the region.

    Otorio

    Has cut 45 employees, more than half of its workforce, after being acquired by cybersecurity company Armis for $120 million in March.

    ActiveFence

    Will reportedly reduce 22 employees, representing 7% of its workforce. Most of those affected are based in Israel as the company undergoes a streamlining process. The New York- and Tel Aviv-headquartered cybersecurity firm has raised $100 million at a valuation of about $500 million in 2021.

    D-ID

    Will cut 22 jobs, affecting nearly a quarter of its total workforce, following the announcement of the AI startup’s strategic partnership with Microsoft.

    NASA

    Announced it will be shutting down several of its offices in accordance with Elon Musk’s DOGE, including its Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy and the DEI branch in the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity.

    Zonar Systems

    Has reportedly laid off some staff, according to LinkedIn posts from ex-employees. The company has not confirmed the layoffs, and it is currently unknown how many workers were affected.

    Wayfair

    Announced plans to let go of 340 employees in its technology division as part of a new restructuring effort.

    HPE

    Will cut 2,500 employees, or 5% of its total staff, in response to its shares sliding 19% in the first fiscal quarter.

    TikTok

    Will cut up to 300 workers in Dublin, accounting for roughly 10% of the company’s workforce in Ireland. 

    LiveRamp

    Announced it will lay off 65 employees, affecting 5% of its total workforce.

    Ola Electric

    Is reportedly set to lay off over 1,000 employees and contractors in a cost-cutting effort. It’s the second round of cuts for the company in just five months.

    Rec Room

    Reduced its total headcount by 16% as the gaming startup shifts its focus to be “scrappier” and “more efficient.”

    ANS Commerce

    Was shut down just three years after it was acquired by Flipkart. It is currently unknown how many employees were affected.

    February

    HP

    Will cut up to 2,000 jobs as part of its “Future Now” restructuring plan that hopes to save the company $300 million before the end of its fiscal year.

    GrubHub

    Announced 500 job cuts after it was sold to Wonder Group for $650 million. The number of cuts affected more than 20% of its previous workforce. 

    Autodesk

    Announced plans to lay off 1,350 employees, affecting 9% of its total workforce, in an attempt to reshape its GTM model. The company is also making reductions in its facilities, though it does not plan to close any offices.

    Google

    Is planning to cut employees in its People Operations and cloud organizations teams in a new reorganization effort. The company is offering a voluntary exit program to U.S.-based People Operations employees.

    Nautilus

    Reduced its headcount by 25 employees, accounting for 16% of its total workforce. The company is planning to release a commercial version of its proteome analysis platform in 2026.

    eBay

    Will reportedly cut a few dozen employees in Israel, potentially affecting 10% of its 250-person workforce in the country.

    Starbucks

    Cut 1,100 jobs in a reorganizing effort that affected its tech workers. The coffee chain will now outsource some tech work to third-party employees.

    Commercetools

    Laid off dozens of employees over the last few weeks, including around 10% of staff in one day, after failing to meet its sales growth targets. The “headless commerce” platform raised money at a $1.9 billion valuation just a few years ago.

    Dayforce

    Will cut roughly 5% of its current workforce in a new efficiency drive to increase profitability and growth.

    Expedia

    Laid off more employees in a new effort to cut costs, though the total number is unknown. Last year, the travel giant cut about 1,500 roles in its Product & Technology division.

    Skybox Security

    Has ceased operations and has laid off its employees after selling its business and technology to Israeli cybersecurity company Tufin. The cuts affect roughly 300 people. 

    HerMD

    Is shutting down its operations after shifting from a brick-and-mortar model to a fully virtual women’s healthcare provider. The startup, which raised $18 million in 2023, has not disclosed how many employees are affected, saying recent layoffs were tied to its former in-person business.

    Zendesk

    Cut 51 jobs in its San Francisco headquarters, according to state filings with the Employment Development Department. The SaaS startup previously reduced its headcount by 8% in 2023.

    Vendease

    Has cut 120 employees, affecting 44% of its total staff. It’s the Y Combinator-backed Nigerian startup’s second layoff round in just five months.

    Logically

    Reportedly laid off dozens of employees as part of a new cost-cutting effort that aims to ensure “long-term success” in the startup’s mission to curb misinformation online.

    Blue Origin

    Will lay off about 10% of its workforce, affecting more than 1,000 employees. According to an email to staff obtained by CNN, the cuts will largely have an impact on positions in engineering and program management. 

    Redfin

    Announced in an SEC filing that it will cut around 450 positions between February and July 2025, with a complete restructuring set to be completed in the fall, following its new partnership with Zillow.

    Sophos

    Is laying off 6% of its total workforce, the cybersecurity firm confirmed to TechCrunch. The cuts come less than two weeks after Sophos acquired Secureworks for $859 million.

    Zepz

    Will cut nearly 200 employees as it introduces redundancy measures and closes down its operations in Poland and Kenya.

    Unity

    Reportedly conducted another round of layoffs. It’s unknown how many employees were affected.

    JustWorks

    Cut nearly 200 employees, CEO Mike Seckler announced in a note to employees, citing “potential adverse events” like a recession or rising interest rates.

    Bird

    Cut 120 jobs, affecting roughly one-third of its total workforce, TechCrunch exclusively learned. The move comes just a year after the Dutch startup cut 90 employees following its rebrand.

    Sprinklr

    Laid off about 500 employees, affecting 15% of its workforce, citing poor business performance. The new cuts follow two earlier layoff rounds for the company that affected roughly 200 employees.

    Sonos

    Reportedly let go of approximately 200 employees, according to The Verge. The company previously cut 100 employees as part of a layoff round in August 2024. 

    Workday

    Laid off 1,750 employees, as originally reported by Bloomberg and confirmed independently by TechCrunch. The cuts affect roughly 8.5% of the enterprise HR platform’s total headcount.

    Okta

    Laid off 180 employees, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. The cuts come just over one year after the access and identity management giant let go of 400 workers.

    Cruise

    Is laying off 50% of its workforce, including CEO Marc Whitten and several other top executives, as it prepares to shut down operations. What remains of the autonomous vehicle company will move under General Motors.

    Salesforce

    Is reportedly eliminating more than 1,000 jobs. The cuts come as the giant is actively recruiting and hiring workers to sell new AI products.

    January

    Cushion

    Has shut down operations, CEO Paul Kesserwani announced on LinkedIn. The fintech startup’s post-money valuation in 2022 was $82.4 million, according to PitchBook.

    Placer.ai

    Laid off 150 employees based in the U.S., affecting roughly 18% of its total workforce, in an effort to reach profitability.

    Amazon

    Laid off dozens of workers in its communications department in order to help the company “move faster, increase ownership, strengthen our culture, and bring teams closer to customers.”

    Stripe

    Is laying off 300 people, according to a leaked memo reported by Business Insider. However, according to the memo, the fintech giant is planning to grow its total headcount by 17%. 

    Textio

    Laid off 15 employees as the augmented writing startup undergoes a restructuring effort.

    Pocket FM

    Is cutting 75 employees in an effort to “ensure the long-term sustainability and success” of the company. The audio company last cut 200 writers in July 2024 months after partnering with ElevenLabs.

    Aurora Solar

    Is planning to cut 58 employees in response to an “ongoing macroeconomic challenges and continued uncertainty in the solar industry.”

    Meta

    Announced in an internal memo that it will cut 5% of its staff targeting “low performers” as the company prepares for “an intense year.” As of its latest quarterly report, Meta currently has more than 72,000 employees.

    Wayfair

    Will cut up to 730 jobs, affecting 3% of its total workforce, as it plans to exit operations in Germany and focus on physical retailers.

    Pandion

    Is shutting down its operations, affecting 63 employees. The delivery startup said employees will be paid through January 15 without severance.

    Icon

    Is laying off 114 employees as part of a team realignment, per a new WARN notice filing, focusing its efforts on a robotic printing system.

    Altruist

    Eliminated 37 jobs, affecting roughly 10% of its total workforce, even as the company pursues “aggressive” hiring.

    Aqua Security

    Is cutting dozens of employees across its global markets as part of a strategic reorganization to increase profitability.

    SolarEdge Technologies

    Plans to lay off 400 employees globally. It’s the company’s fourth layoff round since January 2024 as the solar industry as a whole faces a downturn.

    Level

    The fintech startup, founded in 2018, abruptly shut down earlier this year. Per an email from CEO Paul Aaron, the closure follows an unsuccessful attempt to find a buyer, though Employer.com has a new offer under consideration to acquire the company post-shutdown.

    This list updates regularly.

    On April 24, 2025, we corrected the number of layoffs that happened in March.

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    Kate Park, Cody Corrall, Alyssa Stringer

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  • Best iPad apps for unleashing and exploring your creativity | TechCrunch

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    If you’re looking to explore your creativity, there are a number of iPad apps that can help you get started. Although the iPad started off as a simple device that could be used to stream content or browse the web on the go, Apple has essentially turned its iPads into powerful machines that can be used to do things like create digital art and edit videos.

    We’ve compiled a list of some of the best iPad apps for creativity that are available on the App Store. 

    Before we get into the list, it’s worth noting that although Adobe’s creative apps are often top choices for creativity on the iPad, this list won’t include them because they are already well-known. The list will instead focus on somewhat lesser-known apps.

    Procreate

    Image Credits:Procreate

    Procreate is one of the most popular drawing apps for the iPad, and for good reason. The app lets you create digital paintings, sketches, and illustrations using dozens of different types of brushes. Procreate is easy to use and features built-in gesture controls, along with a simple interface. 

    The app allows for high-resolution canvases up to 16K by 8K on compatible iPad Pros. It also lets you create storyboards, GIFs, animatics, and simple animations. Plus, you can import image files such as JPG, PNG, and TIFF. Procreate includes several features that are designed to help you during the creative process on your iPad, such as QuickShape, StreamLine, Drawing Assist, and ColorDrop.

    Once you’re finished creating your piece, you can relive your creative journey with the app’s time-lapse “Replay” feature and share a 30-second time-lapse video on social media. 

    You can access Procreate with a one-time payment of $12.99.

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    LumaFusion

    Image Credits:LumaFusion

    LumaFusion is a great app for editing videos if you’re ready to graduate from iMovie. The app features numerous user-friendly features that make it perfect for aspiring videographers or indie filmmakers on a budget. 

    With LumaFusion, you can create multiple layer edits with 4K ProRes and HDR media. You can add different effects, choose from dozens of transitions, and record voice-overs. The app lets you create multilayer titles and import fonts and graphics. Plus, you can fine-tune audio with Graphic EQ, Parametric EQ, Voice isolation, and more. 

    The app lets you create projects with a variety of aspect ratios, including 16:9 landscape, 9:16 portrait, square, widescreen film, anamorphic, and more. 

    LumaFusion is available for a one-time payment of $29.99. You can also purchase additional features, such as multicam editing and the ability to send your project to Final Cut Pro for Mac. 

    Canva

    Image Credits:Canva

    Canva offers a user-friendly platform that allows anyone to create visual content, even without graphic design experience. You can use it to create presentations, infographics, videos, websites, social media posts, and more with over 250,000 templates.

    Canva features tools for editing photos, personalizing content with logos and images, adding audio, and cropping and speeding up video. 

    The platform also has a series of AI features that are designed to make the creation process easier. For instance, you can extend an image using “Magic Switch” or turn ideas into images with “Magic Media.”

    Canva is free but offers a $12.99 monthly subscription if you want unlimited access to its AI features, premium templates, and more. 

    Affinity Designer 2

    Image Credits:Affinity

    Affinity Designer 2 is a graphic design app that combines vector design, pixel-based textures, and retouching into a single platform. It’s great for professional illustrators, web designers, game developers, and other creatives. 

    The app lets you create illustrations, branding, logos, icons, UI/UX designs, typography, posters, labels, fliers, stickers, concept art, digital art, and more. It supports Apple Pencil’s precision, pressure sensitivity, and tilt functionality.

    Affinity Designer 2 features gesture controls to speed up your workflow, and it lets you customize keyboard shortcuts. You can also do things like create your own custom font and zoom to over 1,000,000% for absolute precision. 

    You can access the app through a one-time payment of $18.49. 

    Concepts

    Image Credits:Concepts

    Concepts is a great app for exploring your ideas and experimenting with designs. You can use the app to sketch plans, make notes and mindmaps, and draw storyboards and designs. 

    The app features Nudge, Slice, and Select tools that allow you to easily change any element of your sketch without redrawing it. The app features realistic pens, pencils, and brushes that flow with pressure and tilt. 

    Concepts gives you access to scale and measurement tools that calculate real-world dimensions, and also features a tool wheel or bar that you can personalize to your liking. 

    The app’s basic features are free. Concepts offers a $4.99 monthly subscription if you want access to additional features, such as the ability to create your own brushes and premium editing tools.

    Tayasui Sketches

    Image Credits:Tayasui Sketches

    Tayasui Sketches is a good, user-friendly sketching and drawing app. It has several different features such as a realistic watercolor brush, digital acrylic brushes, the ability to blend two colors to get the perfect shade, gradient and depth tools, and more.

    The app lets you multitask by opening up another app and dragging lawyers and documents between the two. There’s also a “Zen Mode” that lets you create without distractions.

    You can also upload your images to incorporate them into your creations. Tayasui Sketches lets you store your creations into personalized folders.

    Tayasui Sketches’s basic features are free. The app offers a $2.99 monthly subscription that unlocks unlimited layers, new brushes and markers, an extended brush editor, the ability to backup your drawings, and more.

    Dudel Draw

    Image Credits:Dudel Draw

    Dudel Draw is a bit different from the other apps on this list: It’s designed to unleash your creativity by giving you a new shape every day that serves as a starting point to sketch on top of.

    These daily shapes vary from basic geometrical forms to more complex and abstract designs. Plus, you can explore your creativity further by choosing to view the shape from all angles with the app’s “flip” and “rotate” features.

    You can also get your friends in on the creativity with some fun competition by comparing your different creations each day. Dudel Draw offers a great way to sharpen your artistic skills, challenge yourself to create something new every day, and just simply express yourself.

    Dudel Draw is available for free.

    Sketchbook

    Image Credits:Sketchbook

    Sketchbook is an easy-to-use app for sketching, painting, and drawing. The idea behind the app is to make it feel like you’re drawing on paper, as the digital brushes and pens behave like the real thing.

    The app’s interface is simple and lets you tuck away palettes and tools to make it easier to focus on drawing.

    You can customize brushes by tweaking the size, opacity, flow, and more to align them with your personal style. There’s also a “predictive stroke” feature that helps smooth out the lines of your drawing.

    Sketchbook is available for free, but you can unlock premium features for a one-time payment of $2.99. Premium features include the ability to import additional brushes and color palettes, adjust the size of your canvas after you’ve started working, export multiple canvases or an entire album as a PDF, and more.

    This story was originally published in December 2024 and is updated regularly with new information.

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  • Here are the 49 US AI startups that have raised $100M or more in 2025 | TechCrunch

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    Last year was monumental for the AI industry in the U.S. and beyond. 

    There were 49 startups that raised funding rounds worth $100 million or more in 2024, per our count at TechCrunch; three companies raised more than one “mega-round,” and seven companies raised rounds that were $1 billion in size or larger. 

    How will 2025 compare? As we enter near the final month of the year, 2025 has already matched 2024 in terms of companies raising rounds that are $100 million and larger. There are also significantly more companies that have raised multiple funding rounds larger than $100 million this year compared to last.  

    Here are all the U.S. AI companies that have raised $100 million this year: 

    November

    • Anysphere, the maker of viral vibe-coding platform Cursor, raised $2.3 billion in a funding round that valued the company at $29.3 billion. The round was announced on November 13 and is the company’s second funding round this year.  
    • Parallel, which builds web infrastructure for AI agents, raised a $100 million Series A round that was announced on November 12. The round was co-led by Index Ventures and Kleiner Perkins.  
    • Healthcare AI agent startup Hippocratic AI raised a $126 million Series C round that valued the company at $3.5 billion. The round was the company’s second this year, was announced on November 3, and was led by Avenir Growth.  

    October

    • Fireworks AI, a platform that allows users to build AI applications using open source models, raised a $250 million Series C round that was announced on October 28. The round valued the company at $4 billion.  
    • Enterprise AI startup Uniphore is valued at $2.5 billion after a $260 million Series F round that was announced on October 22. The round included Snowflake Ventures, Nvidia, Databricks Ventures, and AMD, among others.  
    • Sesame, a voice AI company, raised a $250 million Series B round co-led by Sequoia and Spark Capital. The round was announced on October 21 and also included SignalRank as a participant.  
    • Cambridge, Massachusetts’s based OpenEvidence, which builds an AI chatbot for the medical field, raised its second funding round of 2025. The $200 million Series C round was announced on October 20 and valued the company at $6 billion.  
    • Lila Sciences, which is looking to build a science superintelligence platform, announced its second funding round of 2025 on October 14. The $350 million Series A round was co-led by Braidwell and Collective Global. 
    • DeepSeek competitor Reflection AI announced its second mega-round of the year on October 9. The $2 billion Series B round valued the company at $8 billion and was led by Nvidia.  
    • EvenUp, which builds AI for the personal injury legal field, announced a $150 million Series E round that valued the company at more $2 billion on October 7. The round was led by Bessemer with participation from Lightspeed, Bain Capital and SignalFire, among others.  

    September

    • Periodic Labs, which is building an AI scientist, announced a $300 million seed round on September 30. Felicis and Andreessen Horowitz led the round with participation from Nvidia, Lightspeed, and Khosla Ventures, among others.  
    • Cerebras Systems, an AI infrastructure company, raised a sizable $1.1 billion Series G round that valued the company at $8.1 billion. The round was announced on September 30 and was co-led by Fidelity and Atreides Management. 
    • Modular announced a $250 million funding round on September 24. The round was led by US Innovative Technology Fund with participation from GV, Greylock, and General Catalyst, among others.  
    • Distyl AI, which builds AI enterprise software, raised a $175 million Series B round that was announced on September 23. This round valued the startup at $1.8 billion and included investors like Khosla Ventures and Lightspeed.  
    • AI infrastructure startup Upscale AI raised a sizable $100 million seed round that was co-led by Maverick Silicon and Mayfield. The round was announced on September 17 and also included StepStone Group, Stanford University, and Qualcomm Ventures, among others.  
    • Groq, an AI inference company, raised a $750 million Series E round that valued the company at nearly $6.9 billion. The round was announced on September 17 and was led by Disruptive.  
    • AI training startup Invisible Technologies was valued at $2 billion after a $100 million fundraise that was announced on September 16. The raise was led by Vanara Capital with participation from Greycroft, Tallwoods Capital, and Freestyle Capital, among others.  
    • Cognition AI, the creator of vibe-coding agent Devin, raised a $400 million Series C round that was announced on September 8. The round was led by Founders Fund and valued the company at $10.2 billion. 
    • AI Infrastructure startup Baseten raised a $150 million Series D round that valued the company at $2.1 billion. The September 5 round was led by Bond with participation from CapitalG, IVP and Spark Capital, among others.  
    • Bret Taylor’s customer service AI agent platform Sierra raised $350 million in a round led by Greenoaks Capital. This fundraise was announced on September 4 and valued Sierra at more than $10 billion.  
    • You.com, a personalized AI search engine, raised a $100 million Series C round led by Cox Enterprises. The round was announced on September 3 and valued the company at $1.5 billion.  
    • AI research lab Anthropic raised its second round of 2025 in September. Anthropic announced a $13 billion Series F round on September 2 that valued the company at $183 billion. The round was led by Iconiq, Fidelity, and Lightspeed.  

    August

    • Healthcare and housing automation platform EliseAI raised $250 million in a Series E round that valued the startup at $2.2 billion. The round, which was announced on August 20, was led by Andreessen Horowitz.
    • Decart, an AI research lab, raised $100 million at a $3.1 billion valuation. The round included Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, and Zeev Ventures, among others, and was announced on August 7.

    July

    • Generative media platform Fal raised a $125 million Series C round led by Meritech Capital Partners. The company announced the round, which values Fal at $1.5 billion, on July 31. Salesforce Ventures, Shopify Ventures, Google AI Futures Fund, and others joined the round.
    • Five-year-old Ambience Healthcare, which is building an AI healthcare operating system, raised a $243 million Series C round that was led by Oak HC/FT and Andreessen Horowitz. Kleiner Perkins, OpenAI Startup Fund, Smash Capital, and others also participated in the round.
    • Reka AI, an AI research lab, raised $110 million in a round that included Snowflake and Nvidia. The Series B round was announced on July 22 and values the company at $1 billion.
    • AI research lab Thinking Machines Lab confirmed that it raised $2 billion on July 15. This sizable seed round was led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Nvidia, Accel, and AMD, among others. The round values the company at $12 billion.
    • Cambridge, Massachusetts-based OpenEvidence, which is building an AI-powered search tool for clinicians, raised $210 million at a $3.5 billion valuation. The Series B round was announced on July 15 and was led by Kleiner Perkins and GV.
    • Harmonic, which is building a mathematical reasoning engine, raised a $100 million Series B round led by Kleiner Perkins. The round was announced on July 10 and values the company at $875 million.

    June

    • Healthcare AI unicorn Abridge announced it raised a $300 million Series E round that values the company at $5.3 billion. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz with Khosla Ventures participating. It was the company’s second round of 2025.
    • Harvey, which builds AI tools for the legal industry, announced it raised its second $300 million round of 2025 on June 23. This latest Series E round was co-led by Kleiner Perkins and Coatue and brings the company’s valuation to $5 billion.
    • Healthcare AI startup Tennr announced it raised a $101 million Series C round led by IVP with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, GV, and Andreessen Horowitz, among others. The round values the company at $605 million.
    • Enterprise search startup Glean continues to rake in cash. The company announced a $150 million Series F round on June 10, led by Wellington Management with participation from Sequoia, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Kleiner Perkins, among others. Glean is now valued at $7.25 billion.
    • Anysphere, the AI research lab behind AI coding tool Cursor, raised a sizable $900 million Series C round that values the company at nearly $10 billion. The round was led by Thrive Capital with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Accel, and DST Global.

    May

    • AI data labeling startup Snorkel AI announced a $100 million Series D round on May 29, valuing the company at $1.3 billion. The round was led by Addition with participation from Prosperity7 Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Greylock.
    • LMArena, a popular, community-driven benchmarking tool for AI models, raised a $100 million seed round that valued the startup at $600 million. The round was announced on May 21 and was co-led by Andreessen Horowitz and UC Investments. Lightspeed Venture Partners, Kleiner Perkins, and Felicis also participated, among others.
    • Las Vegas-based AI infrastructure company TensorWave announced a $100 million Series A round on May 14. The round was co-led by Magnetar Capital and AMD Ventures with participation from Prosperity7 Ventures, Nexus Venture Partners, and Maverick Silicon.

    April

    • SandboxAQ closed a $450 million Series E round on April 4 that valued the AI model company at $5.7 billion. The round included Nvidia, Google, and Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio among other investors.
    • Runway, which creates AI models for media production, raised a $308 million Series D round that was announced on April 3, valuing the company at $3 billion. It was led by General Atlantic. SoftBank, Nvidia, and Fidelity also participated.

    March

    • AI behemoth OpenAI raised a record-breaking $40 billion funding round that valued the startup at $300 billion. This round, which closed on March 31, was led by SoftBank with participation from Thrive Capital, Microsoft, and Coatue, among others.
    • On March 25, Nexthop AI, an AI infrastructure company, announced that it had raised a Series A round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. The $110 million round also included Kleiner Perkins, Battery Ventures, and Emergent Ventures, among others.
    • Cambridge Massachusetts-based Insilico Medicine raised $110 million for its generative AI-powered drug discovery platform as announced on March 13. This Series E round valued the company at $1 billion and was co-led by Value Partners and Pudong Chuangtou.
    • AI infrastructure company Celestial AI raised a $250 million Series C round that valued the company at $2.5 billion. The March 11 round was led by Fidelity with participation from Tiger Global, BlackRock, and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, among others.
    • Lila Sciences raised a $200 million seed round as it looks to create a science superintelligence platform. The round was led by Flagship Pioneering. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company also received funding from March Capital, General Catalyst, and ARK Venture Fund, among others.
    • Brooklyn-based Reflection.Ai, which looks to build superintelligent autonomous systems, raised a $130 million Series A round that values the 1-year-old company at $580 million. The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and CRV.
    • AI coding startup Turing closed a Series E round on March 7 that valued the startup, which partners with LLM companies, at $2.2 billion. The $111 million round was led by Khazanah Nasional with participation from WestBridge Capital, Gaingels, and Sozo Ventures, among others.
    • Shield AI, an AI defense tech startup, raised $240 million in a Series F round that closed on March 6. This round was co-led by L3Harris Technologies and Hanwha Aerospace, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz and the US Innovative Technology Fund, among others. The round valued the company at $5.3 billion
    • AI research and large language model company Anthropic raised $3.5 billion in a Series E round that valued the startup at $61.5 billion. The round was announced on March 3 and was led by Lightspeed with participation from Salesforce Ventures, Menlo Ventures, and General Catalyst, among others.

    February

    • Together AI, which creates open source generative AI and AI model development infrastructure, raised a $305 million Series B round that valued the company at $3.3 billion. The February 20 round was co-led by Prosperity7 and General Catalyst with participation from Salesforce Ventures, Nvidia, Lux Capital, and others.
    • AI infrastructure company Lambda raised a $480 million Series D round that was announced on February 19. The round valued the startup at nearly $2.5 billion and was co-led by SGW and Andra Capital. Nvidia, G Squared, ARK Invest, and others also participated.
    • Abridge, an AI platform that transcribes patient-clinician conversations, was valued at $2.75 billion in a Series D round that was announced on February 17. The $250 million round was co-led by IVP and Elad Gil. Lightspeed, Redpoint, and Spark Capital also participated, among others.
    • Eudia, an AI legal tech company, raised $105 million in a Series A round led by General Catalyst. Floodgate, Defy Ventures, and Everywhere Ventures also participated in the round in addition to other VC firms and numerous angel investors. The round closed on February 13.
    • AI hardware startup EnCharge AI raised a $100 million Series B round that also closed on February 13. The round was led by Tiger Global with participation from Scout Ventures, Samsung Ventures, and RTX Ventures, among others. The Santa Clara-based business was founded in 2022.
    • AI legal tech company Harvey raised a $300 million Series D round that valued the 3-year-old company at $3 billion. The round was led by Sequoia and announced on February 12. OpenAI Startup Fund, Kleiner Perkins, Elad Gil, and others also participated in the raise.

    January

    • Synthetic voice startup ElevenLabs raised a $180 million Series C round that valued the company at more than $3 billion. It was announced on January 30. The round was co-led by ICONIQ Growth and Andreessen Horowitz. Sequoia, NEA, Salesforce Ventures, and others also participated in the round.
    • Hippocratic AI, which develops large language models for the healthcare industry, announced a $141 million Series B round on January 9. This round valued the company at more than $1.6 billion and was led by Kleiner Perkins. Andreessen Horowitz, Nvidia, and General Catalyst also participated, among others.

    This piece was updated on April 23, June 18, August 27 and November 26 to include more deals.

    This piece has been updated to remove that Abridge is based in Pittsburgh; the company was founded there.

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  • The hottest AI wearables and gadgets you can buy right now | TechCrunch

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    A new wave of AI-powered gadgets on the market aims to integrate artificial intelligence into our daily lives like never before.

    Some of these AI wearables — including necklaces, rings, and wristbands, as well as portable devices — serve as productivity tools, while others claim to act as friendly companions listening to your everyday thoughts. Even OpenAI is working on a compact AI companion device.

    Below, we’ve rounded up some of the most notable devices currently available.

    Bee

    Image Credits:Bee AI

    Bee is an affordable pendant priced at $49.99 that can either be clipped to your clothing or worn like a fitness band. This device records everything it hears and learns your routines and preferences to create reminders and notes for you. It even features a mute button for those times you want some privacy. 

    The companion app (currently available only on iOS) is included with a $19 monthly subscription. The app allows you to interact with Bee directly and ask it questions. You can also get key takeaways from your day and chronological transcripts of your conversations. 

    Amazon recently acquired the wearables startup in July.

    Friend

    Image Credits:Friend

    Friend is one of the most hyped entrants in the “personal AI” device market.

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    This $129 white pendant hangs around your neck and functions as an emotional support companion. It recognizes your tone and mood, allowing you to chat with it as if it were a friend. It connects to your phone via Bluetooth and constantly listens, ready to respond or send you proactive messages, like wishing you good luck before an interview. 

    However, it has also faced criticism, including a recent backlash against its subway ad campaign in NYC. People vandalized the ads, writing messages like “surveillance capitalism.”

    Limitless

    8 Limitless pendants in various colors
    Image Credits:Limitless

    Formerly known as Rewind, Limitless is another conversation-recording pendant priced at $99. 

    This device continuously listens, transcribing meetings, calls, and conversations (with consent) into searchable and summarized knowledge. It’s ideal for professionals, especially journalists, looking to recall important discussions. 

    The companion app comes with 10 hours of AI features per month — such as transcription and summaries — with the option to unlock unlimited features for $29 per month.

    Omi

    A still from a promotional video for Omi
    Image Credits:Omi

    Priced at $89, this device can answer your questions, summarize your conversations, create to-do lists, and help schedule meetings. Additionally, Omi is constantly listening and running your conversations through ChatGPT, allowing it to remember the context about you and offer personalized advice.

    Omi can be worn as a necklace, but another notable aspect is that it can be attached to the side of your head with medical tape and can detect when you’re speaking to it.

    Plaud’s NotePin

    Plaud's NotePin hanging around a person's neck
    Image Credits:Plaud

    At $159, Plaud’s NotePin is one of the pricier options on this list; however, its built-in AI transcription and summarization features make it a valuable tool for lawyers, journalists, and students attending meetings or lectures. 

    The tiny wearable voice recorder can be worn on your wrist or attached magnetically to your clothing. The recordings are saved in real time on your phone, eliminating the hassle of manual note-taking. The device includes 300 free monthly transcription minutes, but with the $8.33 per month Pro plan, you upgrade your transcription time to 1,200 minutes.

    This year, the company is gearing up to launch a $179 ultra-thin note-taking device called the Plaud Note Pro, which is now available for preorder.

    Rabbit R1

    Image Credits:Rabbit

    Rabbit R1 is another AI gadget that has quickly become a topic of interest in the tech world, despite facing some challenges during its initial launch. This small, retro-styled handheld device features a touchscreen and rotating camera, at a price point of $199.

    The device is designed to be phone-adjacent, allowing you to perform tasks such as booking flights, ordering meals, and controlling apps without needing to pull out your phone each time. Following a crucial software update that rectified previous performance issues, the Rabbit R1 now boasts expanded AI features. For instance, it introduces “Creations,” a feature that allows you to build your own tools and even games.

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    Lauren Forristal

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  • Jake Hobson’s Garden: A Tour of the Niwaki Founder’s Mini-Forest Backyard

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    Jake Hobson is a master pruner. He’s written two books on pruning: Niwaki: Pruning, Training, and Shaping Trees the Japanese Way and The Art of Creative Pruning: Inventive Ideas for Shaping Trees and Shrubs. And he’s the founder of Niwaki, a Japanese-inspired garden tool company headquartered in England. So, it should come as no surprise that his home landscape in Dorset is full of artfully shaped, precisely pruned shrubs and trees. But it isn’t your usual English garden with clipped hedges—nor is it a replica of Japanese gardens.

    “Everything I do is inspired by Japan, but I’m deliberately not making it all Japanese,” explains Hobson. “There’s no koi pond or red bridges.” Not only does Hobson eschew any decorative Japanese elements, he avoids ornaments altogether. “For me, a Japanese garden is creating a sense of a landscape—an idealized landscape—within the plot. If you bring in ornaments, you ruin the magic of scale. Whereas, if all you’ve got is plants, you can create a sense (if you squint and after a couple of drinks) that maybe you’re looking out into a deep forest.”

    Hobson has successfully created this illusion of landscape within his small space. Looking out the windows of the home he shares with his wife, Keiko, and their son, or gazing at photographs of Hobson’s green, layered garden, it’s hard to believe that it’s not much bigger than a tennis court. 

    When Hobson and his wife bought the house, the backyard had four sheds, a mismatched bunch of overgrown conifers, and a ton of concrete paths. They ripped it all out, leaving just the evergreen hedge that blocks the view from a neighboring building. Hobson commissioned a local carpenter to build a single new shed inspired by a Japanese “summer house” at the back of the plot. Then he planted dozens of evergreen and coniferous shrubs and trees that he has been training and pruning for the last fourteen years. The result is a garden that feels like its own miniature world, full of living sculptures.

    Let’s take a tour of Hobson’s garden, which he photographed himself. (You can follow him on Instagram @niwakijake.)

    Every year Hobson lets the grass grow long and mows a new path through it. “Zigzagging through the garden is a really Japanese thing,” he notes. “You never just go straight into a house.” At right are some of Hobson’s undulating boxwood and a Phillyrea latifolia, which Hobson calls a “cloud-pruned tree.” (He had been growing it for years at his parents home before moving it to the garden.)
    Above: Every year Hobson lets the grass grow long and mows a new path through it. “Zigzagging through the garden is a really Japanese thing,” he notes. “You never just go straight into a house.” At right are some of Hobson’s undulating boxwood and a Phillyrea latifolia, which Hobson calls a “cloud-pruned tree.” (He had been growing it for years at his parents home before moving it to the garden.)

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