Also: Figure AI's secondary drama
Wednesday, April 30, 2025 | | | Welcome to TechCrunch AM! This morning, we're looking at the drastic decrease in apps on the Google Play Store; Figure AI's cease-and-desists; and OpenAI toning down ChatGPT's sycophancy. We've also got notes on: pro-cheating AI vs. anti-cheating AI; sales tax compliance in the age of tariffs; fresh funds for AI that solves real pain points; a creepy new wearable, and more. Let's go! – Rebecca | | | Image Credits: KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP / Getty Images | It looks worse than it is: Since the start of 2024, the Google Play Store has seen a 47% decline in apps hosted on the marketplace. But that's not necessarily a bad thing, considering the sheer number of scammy, spammy, poor-quality apps that were on the app store. Read More Curiouser and curiouser: Robotics startup Figure AI's CEO Brett Adcock has been trumpeting how hot his company's private stock is on the secondary markets. Yet, Figure sent cease-and-desist letters to at least two brokers who run secondary marketplaces, saying they weren't authorized to sell its shares. Read More No one likes a people pleaser: OpenAI says it has rolled back the latest update to GPT-4o after people complained that ChatGPT was being too much of a Yes Man. The company explained what happened and how it would steer the chatbot away from being too "sycophantic." Read More | | | 🛡️ The modern cheatbook argument: AI cheating startup Cluely went viral recently for its bold claims that it can help users "cheat on anything." But some startups are claiming they can detect Cluely's "undetectable" in-browser window, Meanwhile, Cluely says it wants to come up with brain chips to bypass anti-cheating software altogether. Read More ☀️ Making hay: Against a backdrop of increasingly complex cross-border tax regulations, sales tax compliance startup Kintsugi has raised $18 million and doubled its valuation in six months. The startup says it wants to be the Uber for tax compliance. Read More ⛏️ Selling shovels: Cast AI wants to ease the resource headache that comes with all the work that goes into training and running AI workloads. It just raised a $108 million Series C at a close to $900 million valuation off the back of strong growth and some big name partnerships. "We are partnering with the entire ecosystem," said its CEO Yuri Frayman. Read More 💼 Par-AI-legal: Supio has raised $60 million to further scale its AI tool that automates data collection and analysis for legal teams. It aims to help attorneys and paralegals avoid spending hours and hours reviewing medical records, police reports, and expert opinions. Read More 🖼️ A contender: Online graphic design platform Freepik has released a new "open" AI image model that it says was trained exclusively on licensed, "safe-for-work" images. While Freepik is late to the game, relying on licensed work could be a boon for the company as incumbents face a slew of copyright infringement lawsuits. Read More | | | 💔Couples counseling is cheaper: The Verge has a story about a smart ring concept that could let you know when your romantic partner is cheating on you. This dystopian loyalty tracker is from the folks behind dating app RAW, and I truly hope it's a publicity stunt, because the implied risk to privacy here is astounding. Read More 👬 Can AI make a good wingman? Grindr is using AI tools from Amazon and Anthropic to develop features for its "Wingman" product, per Bloomberg. Included in the product roadmap is "A-List," which curates "meaningful past connections, high-potential matches" and chat summaries so users can pick up where they left off with someone who might have unintentionally ghosted them. Read More 🚸 Smart move: The Finnish Parliament has voted to ban mobile devices used by kids during class time, per local news outlet Yle. Fingers crossed other countries follow suit. Read More | | | 🤳 Keeping it not simple: Snapchat is dropping plans for a simplified version of its app. It had been testing making the Snap Map and Stories tabs a little less readily available, but found that "power users" don't want to search for their favorite stalking-adjacent features. 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 | | | | |
