Also: What's next for Buzzfeed?
Welcome to TechCrunch AM! This morning, we're exploring the fallout of 23andMe's looming bankruptcy, the future of Buzzfeed in the age of AI, and a startup helping AI agents navigate websites. We've also got notes on Cadillac's flashy new EVs; fresh funds for robotics and fintech; the quandary of why you'd BNPL a burrito; Obama's warm welcome to Bluesky; and more. Let's go! — Rebecca | | | Image Credits: Eric Baradat / AFP / Getty Images | Genetic data on sale: 23andMe's looming bankruptcy proceedings are intensifying concerns over what might happen to the genetic data of its 15 million customers, which are now apparently assets to be sold via a court-supervised sale. Read More Buzzfeed's founder and CEO Jonah Peretti has navigated the company through a near-constant spree of reinvention – from viral quiz and listicle publisher to serious journalism to an upcoming AI-fueled social media platform. But as the company matures, is Peretti jerking it through a series of experiments at the expense of a cohesive long-term plan? Read More Helping the AI help you: As Big AI seems dead set on developing AI agents to take over drudgework, a variety of startups are cropping up to help those agents navigate websites and perform those tasks. One such company, Browser Use, has just raised a $17 million seed round led by Felicis' Astasia Myers. Read More | | | 🚘 Do makeovers work? Cadillac's new IQ portfolio of electric cars is putting the company on a "techier, more advanced, and luxurious plane," writes Emme Hall, who recently tested the compact Optiq SUV (AKA Young and Fun) and the full-sized Escalade IQ (AKA Old Money Luxe). Read More 💳 Classic founder story time: The founders of African fintech Enza, which raised $6 million in seed funding, were at Dubai payments giant Network International when they noticed the gap in solutions for banks and fintechs, especially in Africa. Read More 🤖 On to the next one: Former Cruise co-founder and CEO Kyle Vogt's new robotics startup, The Bot Company, has raised $150 million in a round led by Greenoaks. The fresh funds come less than a year since Vogt launched the startup with $150 million. Read More 🌯 BNPL is just debt: And yet companies like Klarna sell the story that it isn't. To make matters more potentially dubious, Klarna announced a recent deal with DoorDash so that diners can buy now and pay later for their family's dinner order. Read More ⛔ Keep your millions: South Korean startup FuriosaAI has reportedly rejected a $800 million buyout offer from Meta so it can focus instead on developing and producing its own AI chips. Read More | | | 🧑💻 The state of AI usage among coders: Wired surveyed 730 coders to see how much they actually use AI tools. Most have tried it and use it at least once a week, but only 17% use AI "like, at all times." Early-career coders are the most likely to be "pro-AI." Read More 💣 Cold war goes AI: The Financial Times has an enlightening interview with Torsten Reil, founder of defense tech company Helsing that's delivering thousands of AI-enabled strike drones to Ukraine. Helsing's motto? "Artificial intelligence to protect our democracies." Read More 😡 When we talk about AI regulation, we're talking about cases like nonconsensual deepfake porn, which transforms innocent photos of young women into pornographic images. Bloomberg's Levittown podcast takes a look at a community that has been rocked by fake nudes. Read More | | | 💙 'We came here to shape it': Former U.S. president Barack Obama has joined Bluesky, scoring the platform a big win. So far, he's been posting about the 15th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, the healthcare coverage he passed which Trump is poised to seriously restrict. Read More | | | Featured jobs from CrunchBoard | | | Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. | | | Update your preferences here at any time | | Copyright © 2024 TechCrunch, All rights reserved.Yahoo Inc. 680 Folsom Street,San Francisco,CA | | | | |
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