Monday, March 17, 2025

Welcome to TC PM! Today we have the details on xAI's acquisition of Hotshot; we learn that a satellite project to monitor wildfires is making progress; we have the latest on Telegram founder Pavel Durov; and more! It's go time.

TechCrunch Top 3

Image Credits: Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket / Getty Images

🛒 AI acquisition: Elon Musk's xAI acquired Hotshot, a startup building AI-powered video-generation tools. Hotshot has raised an undisclosed amount of venture funding and has built three video foundation models over the past two years.

😮 You can't do that: Former DOGE staffer Marko Elez, who resigned in February after he was linked to racist social media posts, also apparently violated Treasury policies. Elez allegedly emailed a spreadsheet with unencrypted personal data to Trump administration officials.

🧱 More models: Roblox is launching the first iteration of its 3D model, Cube, which allows users to create 3D objects using generative AI. The company also launched an open source version of the model open to anyone on the platform.

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Afternoon must-reads

Image Credits: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin / Contributor / Getty Images

⏲️ Kalanick wants more: For the past eight years, Uber co-founder and former CEO Travis Kalanick has been building CloudKitchens, his ghost kitchen startup. At a recent conference, Kalanick hinted that there may be an AI play in the future.

📑 Lawsuit time: Flexport is suing two of its former employees for allegedly stealing thousands of documents and source code to build their own startup, Freightmate AI. Freightmate COO Jason Zhao reportedly downloaded more than 70,000 documents. Yeesh.

🔓 A security vulnerability: Security researchers are warning that hackers, linked to the LockBit hacking group, are exploiting two Fortinet firewall vulnerabilities and deploying ransomware on several company websites.

👋 Au revoir: Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, is no longer being required to stay in France and has returned home to Dubai. Durov was arrested in France in August 2024 for allegedly being complicit in facilitating organized fraud and crime on his messaging platform.

🛰️ Satellites for safety: Google-backed FireSat is building a constellation of more than 50 satellites that will orbit the earth and watch for wildfires. The first satellite was successfully launched into orbit over the weekend. Cool!

Around the web

🌍 The end of globalization? Evan Smith started Altana in 2019 when he predicted that the globalization of supply chains, as we knew it, had run its course. The Verge caught up with him to look into what happens next in the global trade war that's gaining momentum.

💸 Drone dollars: Drone shows have become increasingly popular in recent years. Drone show designer Ajay Sreekumar offers an inside look into the medium that combines art and technology and is growing rapidly in the Middle East and Asia.

Before you go

Image Credits: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Dev day week: Nvidia's GTC conference is happening all week, and we'll be on the ground in San Jose to bring you the latest from the company's biggest event of the year.