WhatsApp's new discussion groups offer end-to-end encryption and support up to 1,024 users

TechCrunch Newsletter

By Christine Hall and Haje Jan Kamps Thursday, November 03, 2022

Oh heeeey! How are you doing today? We've had a pretty busy day on the site today, with a veritable cornucopia of news spilling all over the internet. We've selected some of the most interesting slices for you below. Enjoy (as far as you can enjoy another day of news about cutbacks and whispered advice to try and panic as little as possible). — Christine and Haje Image Credits: WhatsApp

The TechCrunch Top 3 WhatsUp over at WhatsApp: The messaging giant has been preparing us for this moment since August, and it is finally here: Communities! The new discussion group enables more people to be included and features voice and video calls for up to 32 people, as well as emojis galore, polls and large file sharing, Sarah reports. Might want to switch to polka dots: Stripe cuts 14% of its workforce, and Paul writes that its CEO points to "overhiring for the world we're in" as having caused the reduction. Unfortunately, it is a layoffs kind of day, so head down to Big Tech Inc. if you can stomach reading more. Where in the world is Ajit Mohan?: Well, the former head of Meta India is now over there at Snap and will serve as the president of the company's APAC business, Manish and Jagmeet write.

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Startups and VC "Most designers don't have real-life manufacturing experience and they are drawing things that aren't useable by the factory," Xianfeng Wang, founder and CEO of Pacdora, tells TechCrunch. To bridge the gap between designers and manufacturers. Wang's team developed Pacdora, which is like Canva plus Figma for packaging, Rita reports. The platform offers thousands of packaging templates for all kinds of products, from shipping boxes and coffee bags to lotion bottles and yogurt pouches. "I was always looking for that piece of software that could help us do this internally," Juan Meisel told Christine. He is building a logistics solution with his new startup, Grip.  "I started advising some companies on the side. They got their ButcherBox in the mail and were trying to ship anything from frozen milk to chocolate, flowers and pharmaceuticals." Okay, fine, have another handful of startup news stories: Chiming 12% less: Digital bank Chime is cutting costs across the board — including 12% of staff, Natasha M reports. Good boy, that's a good robot: Brian reports that Labrador Systems deploys its first assistive elder-care robots. Open wide: OpenAI will give 10 AI startups $1 million each and early access to its systems, Kyle reports. Like Rotten Tomatoes, but for VCs: Natasha M reports that Revere is creating a ratings system for the venture capital industry. From ashes to ashes: Bruvi's new coffee pods biodegrade faster with the power of enzymes, Haje reports.

Proptech in Review: 3 investors explain how finance-focused proptech startups can survive the downturn How are finance-oriented property tech investors reacting to the ongoing downturn in public markets? Senior reporter Mary Ann Azevedo interviewed three VCs to learn more about how they’re counseling the companies in their portfolios, which types of startups are best positioned to weather the downturn, and how they’re managing risk: Pete Flint, general partner, NFX Zach Aarons, co-founder and general partner, MetaProp Nima Wedlake, principal, Thomvest Ventures Three more from the TC+ team: Let's talk turkey: Guru Hariharan shares tips for e-commerce startups that want to win market share this holiday season. Your body, your choice: More than 70 VC firms join VCs for Repro coalition to support reproductive rights, Dominic-Madori writes. Step 1: Don't panic. Investor’s advice during a downturn: Don't panic, by Mary Ann. TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams get ahead of the pack. You can sign up here. Use code "DC" for a 15% discount on an annual subscription! Read More Image Credits: Kuzma / Getty Images

Big Tech Inc. Step right up, folks! We know you don't like carrying around a paper grocery list — heck, we know scrolling on that small phone screen is a nuisance, too. Well, Amazon and Mojo Vision have a treat for you, or rather, your eyeballs. Today, they introduced a proof of concept feature that Brian says is "the first major third-party consumer application on a smart contact lens." That's right, an Alexa Shopping List integration for a contact lens that has a computing interface. Layoffs, layoffs as far as the eye can see today. While we already shared the Stripe news with you, and as you've likely been hearing for the past week, Elon Musk is also doing some workforce reduction at Twitter. Natasha L reports that he now plans to slash Twitter's headcount by half. Meanwhile, Kirsten writes that Lyft is laying off 13% of its workforce in an effort to cut operating expenses. And we have five more for you: Tweaking privacy: A TikTok privacy update in Europe confirms that certain staff in China can access data. Natasha L has lots more. Fossils unite: Mastodon seems to be one of the direct beneficiaries of Elon Musk taking over Twitter. The decentralized social network grew to 655,000 users since the deal closed, Sarah writes. No skipping: Today, Netflix unveiled its ad-supported plan, Lauren reports. A “lapse” in judgment, don't you think?: User error is being blamed for why some of AstraZeneca’s patient data was left in a GitHub repository, Zack reports. Silencing the Chirp: Ivan writes that Twitter decided to cancel the Chirp conference.

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Former Googlers raise more than $90M to scale alternative asset fintech startup

TechCrunch Newsletter

By Christine Hall and Haje Jan Kamps Wednesday, November 02, 2022

Hellooooo, guess what? It's November! We guess it was actually November yesterday, too, but we failed to notice, because LOL what even is time, amirite. Anyway, put away your Halloween costumes and start the game of How Long Can You Avoid “Little Drummer Boy”? If you do want to play that game, you'd be well advised to not click this link, although that's a particularly tolerable version of the song, to be fair. Onward! — Christine and Haje Image Credits: SAJJAD HUSSAIN / AFP / Getty Images

The TechCrunch Top 3 And for his next act…: Manish was on a roll again today, covering some cool stories. The first is on some former Googlers rallying around their peer Caesar Sengupta, who raised $90 million to scale Arta Finance, a company that will provide individuals similar access to alternative assets that are usually reserved for the ultrawealthy. Betting on web3: Manish's second story is on Microsoft, which is backing South Korea–based web3 game developer Wemade. Come together, right now, in the cloud: Though many companies are asking employees to come back into the office, they and others are still figuring out how to keep distributed teams working as one. Former Yext CEO Howard Lerman thinks he has created the best option with Roam, a company that came out of stealth today with $30 million in new funding, Kyle reports.

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Startups and VC New data from more than 200 startups show that CTOs earn higher salaries than their CEO counterparts. Mostly, co-founders make the same, but where there is a difference, the balance typically tips in the favor of the technical co-founder, Haje reports. Also, we've got an eclectic mix of additional news for ya: Wild tales of smarter sales: Kyle reports that Orum raised $22 million to inject AI into the sales prospecting process. Hand built by robots: Picsart adds an AI Image Generator and AI Writer to its suite of creative tools, Aisha reports. Like a Discman but different: Everything is stupid and bad right now, Brian writes, and he wonders if maybe this $200 portable turntable will make things better. Once more into the Brex: Natasha M reports that Brex is starting to look more and more like a VC firm over time. Smarter, kinder money: Paul writes that Mozilla launches a $35 million venture capital fund for early-stage “responsible” startups.

Dear Sophie: How can students work or launch a startup while maintaining their immigration status? Dear Sophie, I'm studying bioinformatics at a university in the U.S. What options do I have to work before and after graduation on my student visa? Do any of these options allow me to launch my own startup? — Wanting to Work Three more from the TC+ team: Discounts! Get yer discounts! Welcome to the late-stage discount market, where everything is on sale and few folks are buying, by Alex. Summer is coming: Unicorns face 5-1 odds as they wait for public markets to warm, by Anna and Alex. It's the battle of the market dynamics: Bitcoin miners struggle as energy prices rise and hash prices fall, by Jacquelyn. TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams get ahead of the pack. You can sign up here. Use code "DC" for a 15% discount on an annual subscription! Read More Image Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch

Big Tech Inc. Elon Musk met with civil rights leaders, and Amanda has all the details on what went down. Many of the leaders were concerned with content moderation, particularly dealing with increases in hate speech and undue influence on the midterm elections. Meanwhile, Natasha M writes that another Twitter executive is reportedly flying the coop. Meanwhile, Manish continues to follow the Byju’s saga. The latest is that India's edtech giant is looking at a $1 billion IPO for Aakash, its physical tutor chain. And we have five more for you: For whom the bell tolls: Well, it tolls over at Chime and Opendoor. The digital bank confirmed to Natasha M and Mary Ann that it was cutting 12% of its staff, or 160 people, as it manages current economic conditions. Meanwhile, Mary Ann covers the 550 people being laid off at Opendoor. Track that package: Gmail has a new package tracking service just in time to get your holiday shopping on, Sarah reports. Robot riot: Brian was following today's Google AI event and brings us some new research from the search engine giant related to letting robots generate their own code. Marriage made in tech heaven: Tencent and China Unicom are setting up a joint venture that is causing a stir among China's tech sector. Rita has more. TikTok's future: In typical Devin style, he opines about why renewed calls to ban TikTok would be "political self-sabotage."

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Amazon expands music catalog from 2M to 100M songs for Prime subscribers

TechCrunch Newsletter

By Christine Hall and Haje Jan Kamps Tuesday, November 01, 2022

The discussion is on in the newsroom as to whether folks are eager to pay between $8 and $20 per month for their blue checks on Twitter. Alex's take was particularly sharp… "Not in the mood to finance your vanity project," indeed. — Christine and Haje Image Credits: Getty Images

The TechCrunch Top 3 As Whitney Houston would never be caught singing: And Priiiiiiiiiiiiime will always love youuuuuuu: Amazon Prime knows what's up. That's why they now have a full music catalog of over 100 million songs and podcasts so you don't need that pesky membership to Apple or Spotify. Sarah has more. What goes up…: Volocopter comes soaring in with $182 million big ones as it continues developing its air taxi service, Rebecca writes. If you are following along at home, this is in addition to the $170 million it got earlier this year for the same round at a $1.87 billion post-money valuation. … must come down: Darrell has been following SpaceX's successful launch of Falcon Heavy.

Startups and VC TouchBistro, an iPad-based restaurant management platform, secured $110 million in growth financing from Francisco Partners to accelerate its growth, expand its product pipeline and make some strategic acquisitions, Christine reports. How's this for some dodgy rhymes: Remember, remember, the first of November: Natasha M reports that Rewind wants to revamp how you remember, with millions from a16z. A broader range on climate change: Harri reports that “simply decarbonizing” isn't enough, as Third Nature targets $35 million fund. Keep your hands off my scans: MedCrypt lands $25 million injection to secure vulnerable medical devices, Carly reports. A better gauge for your old age: Retirable secures $6 million to plan retirement for those without millions in savings, Christine reports. Companies combine for better design: Shopify acquires Remix to bolster its storefront design tools, Kyle reports.

Prepare to amortize: Inflation may spell doom for R&D tax expensing The U.S. federal government has made R&D tax credits available for decades, but a major change set to take place this year will impact startups across the board. Previously, R&D expenditures could be expensed up front, but now “those expenses will need to be amortized over 5 years in the case of domestic research, and 15 years for foreign research,” according to tax attorney Andrew Leahey. Because so many startups “incur the bulk of their R&D costs in their first year of operation,” many could wait “the equivalent of a lifetime” to recover those expenses. High inflation has stalled efforts to repeal the amortization requirement, so Leahey shares several tactics companies can use “to prepare for the possibility of the rule coming into effect.” Three more from the TC+ team: Building in the limelight: How Metafy founder Josh Fabian caught the attention of 776 by building in public, by Amanda. Moar games, more web3s: Immutable onboarded more web3 games in Q3 than any other quarter, co-founder says, by Jacquelyn. There's another way, surely: I'm not really in the mood to finance your vanity project, by Alex. TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams get ahead of the pack. You can sign up here. Use code "DC" for a 15% discount on an annual subscription! Read More Image Credits: Fancy/Veer/Corbis / Getty Images

Big Tech Inc. As always, we have all the Twitter news that's fit to post. We promise to keep it to a minimum today because there is other fantastic news to share. However, we do want to point out that Elon Musk likes to work out his thought process in tweet form now, so news is changing as the wind blows. Here's what you need to know today: Musk continues to talk up his plans for Twitter Blue and ad-free news articles (both by Ivan), while Amanda reports on the company's chief customer officer Sarah Personette, who resigned today. The move is quite surprising, given that she tweeted positively about a conversation with Musk last week. Meanwhile, over at Mastodon, things are happening, Sarah writes. And we have five more for you: Baby, you can drive my company: Ford and VW are looking for a buyer for Argo AI's lidar unit, Kirsten reports. Rolling with the 5G: Annie writes that pricey 5G smartphones are impeding the speedier adoption of a 5G network rollout. Hacked off: The Federal Trade Commission is accusing edtech giant Chegg of "careless" cybersecurity practices that led to exposure of information for tens of millions of customers and employees. Carly has more. Seeing green: The Indonesia Stock Exchange is joining with Metaverse Green Exchange on a blockchain-powered carbon trading scheme slated to launch in 2025, Rita reports. Ah, push it: We are loving Rebecca's headline, "Uber tests push notifications, a feature literally no one wants."

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Newest Jobs from Crunchboard SharePoint Application Solutions Analyst at Akron Children's Hospital (Akron, OH, USA) Spire Animation Studios, Inc. at Spire Animation Studios, Inc. (Los Angeles, California, USA) Senior Site Reliability Engineer - Remote Role at Coviu (Vancouver, BC, Canada) Managing Director, Tech Clients at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP (New York, NY, USA) Senior Dev Ops Engineer at Zylo (United States) See more jobs on CrunchBoard Post your tech jobs and reach millions of TechCrunch readers for only $200 per month.

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