Monday, January 6, 2025

Hey, y'all, it's Dominic, and I'm guest-writing today's afternoon newsletter. Today, we have tons of CES news for you, though the show officially kicks off tomorrow. We also have some interesting fundraising announcements and the latest news about a group of Chinese hackers.

TechCrunch Top 3

Image Credits: Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP / Getty Images

🌎 What in the world (models)? Google is creating a new team to make AI models that can simulate the real world. Tim Brooks, who co-led OpenAI's video generator, has been tapped to lead the new team. Read more

🤩 Live from CES: TechCrunch is on the ground at CES 2025, bringing you the can't-miss news from one of the world's largest tech conferences. Keep up with our coverage to make sure you stay up-to-date. Read more

🤝 Streaming merger: Disney announced the groundbreaking merger between Hulu Live TV and Fubo, with the hopes of taking on YouTube TV. It comes as the world of streaming services sees some shake-ups as their parent companies search for profitability. Read more

A Message from HumanX

Attend the No. 1 AI event of 2025 — Everyone else is!

HumanX brings together 300 of the world's most important AI speakers, 3,500 of the world's preeminent business leaders, and global vendors who can connect the dots between theory and execution. If you are involved in AI and not at HumanX, you will be left behind — it's that simple. Use TC250 for $250 off a GA ticket!

Afternoon must-reads

Image Credits: MustafaU / Getty Images

👀 A hacking party: There are new Chinese-government-backed hacking groups in town — Volt Typhoon, whose group mission is to disrupt the U.S. military's mobilization ability, and Flax Typhoon, which helps conceal the activities of China's hackers. We have the story of who these groups are — and what they want. Read more

🚜 Landscaping robots: John Deere showcased a bunch of new products at CES, including a landscaping electric robot. It also revealed an automated dump truck and an autonomous orchard tractor that can spray crops. Read more

🛍️ Hey, big spender: A new Salesforce report reveals that online spending rose this year, with the U.S. specifically seeing a 4% increase, with $282 billion spent over the holiday period. We dig into what these numbers mean — and the one catch that turns the numbers on their heads. Read more

🤖 Robot bucks: RoboForce, a company that's building robots to do tasks like install solar panels, raised $10 million from Carnegie Mellon University and Nobel Laureate economist Myron Scholes. Read more

💰 Money for transpo: Trucks VC has launched a $70 million fund to invest in transportation startups. This is the third — and largest — fund that the firm has raised. It hopes to cut at least 30 seed checks between $500,000 and $2 million. Read more

🚗 EVs are still hot, hot, hot: Lucid, a luxury EV startup, delivered a record number of cars last year, seeing its production numbers increase from 7% in 2023. It comes as competitors like Tesla have started to see a drop in sales. Read more

Around the web

🇺🇸 All eyes on the White House: Trump going to Washington means tech does, too. The Economist has the rundown on what might be a clash of cultures as Elon Musk and the Valley start heading to the Hill. Read more

💸 China's startup ecosystem is on edge: Failed founders in China are being put on the national debtor blacklist for failing to pay investors back. The Financial Times has more

Before you go

Image Credits: Liudmila Chernetska / Getty Images

🔮 New year, new predictions: We asked a few investors what they expect this year to bring. Some answers weren't a surprise, like the restart of M&A activity as the Trump administration settles in, and the feeling that AI will continue on its path to overtake the world. But some answers were a little surprising. Read more