Whoop's valuation just tripled to $10 billion

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  March 31, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Whoop's valuation just tripled to $10 billion: The fitness tracking startup just closed a $575 million Series G with Cristiano Ronaldo and LeBron James among its investors. The obvious question looming over a round of this size at this valuation: Is an IPO coming? Read More Social gaming platform Rec Room, once valued at $3.5B, is shutting down: Rec Room, the social platform for user-generated games and virtual experiences, will shutter on June 1. Read More Uber increases stake in WeRide as robotaxi partnership ramps up in Dubai: Uber and WeRide have launched robotaxi operations without a human safety operator in Dubai as part of a broader expansion in the Middle East. Read More Disrupt 2026: Where deals and ideas ignite Oct 13–15 at San Francisco's Moscone West, 10,000 founders, investors, and operators gather for high-signal insights, curated connections, and real momentum. Sign up! A message from Stripe Complimentary pass to Sessions with code s26techcrunch100 Join Stripe at Sessions 2026—the internet economy conference—happening April 29–30 in San Francisco. Join fellow business leaders, founders, and developers to explore the latest in financial technology, global commerce, and strategies for growth. Register with code s26techcrunch100 for a complimentary pass. Register Now Afternoon Must-Reads Google is now letting users in the US change their Gmail address: Users will be able to change their username only once every 12 months. Plus, they won't be able to delete their new email address for that period of time. Read More Roku launches a standalone app for Howdy, its $2.99 streaming service: With this new app, Roku says subscribers can access Howdy's library of content on the go. Read More North Korean hackers blamed for hijacking popular Axios open source project to spread malware: A hacker inserted malware in Axios, an open source web tool downloaded tens of millions of times weekly, in a widespread hack. Read More Airbnb is introducing a private car pickup service: Airbnb is partnering with transportation company Welcome Pickups to let users book a private car service during their trip. Read More Speechify's Windows app uses local models for transcription and dictation: Speechify just launched a native Windows app that employs locally stored models to enable dictation and transcription across apps. Read More A message from Stripe Complimentary pass to Sessions with code s26techcrunch100 Join Stripe at Sessions 2026—the internet economy conference—happening April 29–30 in San Francisco. Join fellow business leaders, founders, and developers to explore the latest in financial technology, global commerce, and strategies for growth. Register with code s26techcrunch100 for a complimentary pass. Register Now You missed these chats from Disrupt: Kindred talks home-swapping platform for travelers, Chef Robotics introduces AI into commercial kitchens, and Character.AI addresses chatbot safety with teens. Watch on Cheddar.com Watch on Streaming Last but Not Least Meta was finally held accountable for harming teens. Now what?: Meta faces thousands more court cases while Congress has proposed numerous bills addressing children's online safety, some heavily criticized. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107

Exclusive: Runway launches $10M fund, Builders program to support early stage AI startups

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories to start your morning

View this email online in your browser  March 31, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Exclusive: Runway launches $10M fund, Builders program to support early stage AI startups: Runway is launching a $10 million fund and startup program to back companies building with its AI video models, as it pushes toward interactive, real-time "video intelligence" applications. Read More Waymo starts robotaxi services at San Antonio International Airport: It's the fourth airport Waymo is serving, adding to Phoenix Sky Harbor, San Francisco, and San Jose International airports. Read More With its new app store, Ring bets on AI to go beyond home security: Ring's app store will allow the company to target broader use cases beyond security, like elder care or business needs. Read More Disrupt 2026: Where deals and ideas ignite Oct 13–15 at San Francisco's Moscone West, 10,000 founders, investors, and operators gather for high-signal insights, curated connections, and real momentum. Sign up! A message from Stripe Complimentary pass to Sessions with code s26techcrunch100 Join Stripe at Sessions 2026—the internet economy conference—happening April 29–30 in San Francisco. Join fellow business leaders, founders, and developers to explore the latest in financial technology, global commerce, and strategies for growth. Register with code s26techcrunch100 for a complimentary pass. Register Now Morning Must-Reads Roku launches a standalone app for Howdy, its $2.99 streaming service: With this new app, Roku says subscribers can access Howdy's library of content on the go. Read More Google is now letting users in the US change their Gmail address: Users will be able to change their username only once every 12 months. Plus, they won't be able to delete their new email address for that period of time. Read More Speechify's Windows app uses local models for transcription and dictation: Speechify just launched a native Windows app that employs locally stored models to enable dictation and transcription across apps. Read More Airbnb is introducing a private car pick-up service: Airbnb is partnering with transportation company Welcome Pickups to let users book a private car service during their trip. Read More Popular AI gateway startup LiteLLM ditches controversial startup Delve: LiteLLM had obtained two security compliance certifications via Delve and fell victim to some horrific credential-stealing malware last week. Read More A message from Stripe Complimentary pass to Sessions with code s26techcrunch100 Join Stripe at Sessions 2026—the internet economy conference—happening April 29–30 in San Francisco. Join fellow business leaders, founders, and developers to explore the latest in financial technology, global commerce, and strategies for growth. Register with code s26techcrunch100 for a complimentary pass. Register Now Last but Not Least Allbirds is selling for $39 million. It raised nearly 10 times that amount in its IPO.: The collapse of the brand, which was originally venture-backed and that went public in 2021, has been well-documented. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107