Apple Intelligence has a branding issue: Apple finally took the wraps off its AI strategy, but the tech giant's AI branding feels… confused. Apple's not exactly alone, though: After all, how do you create an icon for an AI that does everything but looks like nothing? Read More
There's no escaping ads on YouTube: Got an ad blocker like SponsorBlock? YouTube is testing out a way around that. SponsorBlock says YouTube is trying out a server-side ad injection with a limited number of users. Read More
YouTube adds Community Notes: TechCrunch got the scoop that YouTube is experimenting with a new "Notes" feature, a la X, that allows viewers to add notes with more context and information under videos. Things like, 'Hey, this song is a parody,' or 'This is actually an old event presented as current news.' It's a push in the right direction for combating misinformation during an election year. Read More
Proton goes non-profit: Where some companies have decided to ditch their nonprofit missions to rake in those dollars, others are going the opposite route. Swiss company Proton, which makes privacy-focused apps like ProtonMail, is following in the footsteps of Signal and Mozilla and transitioning to a non-profit foundation model. Read More
Tinybird is not so tiny anymore: Enterprise data startup Tinybird has raised a $30 million Series B at a $240 million valuation to help companies ingest big data and reuse the information in their products in real time. Read More
Oyo's valuation takes a hit: The Indian budget-hotel chain startup just raised a fresh round of about $100 million to $125 million, sources told TechCrunch. The downside? That round has apparently slashed the startup's valuation to $2.5 billion, down from a peak of $10 billion in 2019. How did the once-hot startup fall so far? Read More
Farewell, Care/of, we hardly knew ye: Not a month after I signed up for vitamin subscription company Care/of, I got a message saying it has shut down. The company said it's run out of money to continue operations. This is the second such company to die on me, and I wonder if the unit economics for such a business simply don't work on venture scale? Read More
Albedo is ready for its close up: Albedo is preparing to take its first satellite to orbit next spring, the first step in its plan to turn the Earth observation industry upside down. Albedo claims to take ultra high-res photos for commercial use, which has previously been the exclusive purview of American defense and intelligence orgs. Read More
The legacy of Lina Khan: FTC Chair Lina Khan was the youngest person appointed to her position in 2021. She'll be stepping down in September, so it's worth a look at her legacy of spearheading the enforcement of anticompetition and consumer protection laws. Read More
Softbank helps Perplexity enter Japan: Perplexity is using its deal with Softbank to expand its user base and data touchpoints in the latter's home market of Japan. Softbank and two of its telecom companies plan to offer free, one-year subscriptions to Perplexity's premium tier, Perplexity Pro, starting June 19. Read More
