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Inside EV startup Fisker’s collapse: how the company crumbled under its founders’ whims

Transportation /

An autonomous pod. A solid-state battery-powered sports car. An electric pickup truck. A convertible grand tourer EV with up to 600 miles of range. A “fully connected mobility device” for young urban innovators to be built by Foxconn and priced under $30,000. The next Popemobile. Over the past eight years, famed vehicle designer Henrik Fisker […]

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Instagram tests ‘trial reels’ that don’t display to a creator’s followers

Apps /

Instagram is testing a way for creators to experiment with reels without committing to having them displayed on their profiles, giving the social network a possible edge over TikTok and a way for creators to test new content without pressure to perform. The company this week began global tests of this new “trial reels” feature

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VC firm Antler’s CEO says Asia presents ‘biggest opportunity’ in the world for growth

Venture /

Asia’s startup ecosystem hasn’t been doing well in the past couple years, as everything from geopolitics to higher interest rates affected investors’ willingness to write checks. Many venture firms have exited China, which used to be the continent’s biggest venture market. Though there hasn’t been a huge decline in the number of fundraising rounds, the

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Fisker cuts hundreds of workers in bid to keep EV startup alive

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Struggling EV startup Fisker has laid off hundreds of employees in a bid to stay alive, as it continues to search for funding, a buyout or prepare for bankruptcy. Workers suspected layoffs were coming when the company directed everyone to work from home on Wednesday — an out-of-character directive, according to multiple current and former

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This founder says memetech is the next big thing

Media & Entertainment /

Alex Taub, a longtime founder with multiple exits under his belt, believes it’s time to disrupt the meme industry. “I have this big thesis that memetech is going to be the next big category,” Taub told TechCrunch. “Like, there’s healthtech, there’s proptech, there’s adtech, there’s fintech… I think memetech is about to have a big

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Onyx Motorbikes was in trouble — and then its 37-year-old owner died

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James Khatiblou, the owner and CEO of Onyx Motorbikes, was watching his e-bike startup fall apart.  Onyx was being evicted from its warehouse in El Segundo, Los Angeles. The company’s unpaid bills were stacking up. His chief operating officer had abruptly resigned. A shipment of around 100 CTY2 dirt bikes from Chinese supplier Suzhou Jindao

Onyx Motorbikes was in trouble — and then its 37-year-old owner died Read More »

Indian EV startup Zypp Electric secures ENEOS backing to fund expansion to Southeast Asia

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Indian startup Zypp Electric plans to use fresh investment from Japanese oil and energy conglomerate ENEOS to take its EV rental service into Southeast Asia early next year, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. The company aims to be in 15 markets over the next two years. Of those 15 markets, Zypp Electric plans to launch its

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India’s BluSmart is testing its ride-hailing service in Dubai

Apps /

Indian ride-hailing startup BluSmart has started operating in Dubai, TechCrunch has exclusively learned and confirmed with its executive. The move to Dubai, which has been rumored for months, could help counter the likes of Careem, Uber and Hala in the United Arab Emirates’ most populous city. The Gurugram-based startup quietly enabled the new Dubai service

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Peter Thiel-founded Valar Ventures raised a $300 million fund, half the size of its last one

Venture /

The perception in Silicon Valley is that every investor would love to be in business with Peter Thiel. But the venture capital fundraising environment has become so difficult, that even Valar Ventures, one of the VC firms he helped found, has raised a much smaller fund this year compared to previous ones.  Thiel set up

Peter Thiel-founded Valar Ventures raised a $300 million fund, half the size of its last one Read More »