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Uzbekistan’s mobile bank TBC bags $37M to expand with new AI and insurance products

Fintech /

Uzbekistan’s mobile-exclusive bank, TBC Bank Uzbekistan, has raised $37 million in a new funding round to bolster its dominating digital presence in the Central Asian nation by developing new AI and tech products and attracting more tech-savvy customers. The fresh investment, made by the bank’s London-based parent TBC Group, comes just five months after it […]

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In just 4 months AI coding assistant Cursor raised another $100M at a $2.5B valuation led by Thrive, sources say

AI /

Anysphere, the developer of AI-powered coding assistant Cursor, raised $100 million Series B at a post-money valuation of $2.6 billion, according to sources with knowledge of the deal. The round is being led by returning investor Thrive Capital, the person said.  This new funding comes just four months after Anysphere raised its $60 million Series

In just 4 months AI coding assistant Cursor raised another $100M at a $2.5B valuation led by Thrive, sources say Read More »

Backed by a16z and NEA, Backflip raises $30M Series A to turn text into AI-generated designs

Startups /

What if it were as easy to generate a usable 3D design as prompting ChatGPT? That’s the mission of Backflip, a startup founded by 3D printing veterans that’s just scored $30 million from Andreessen Horowitz, New Enterprise Associates, and a host of other big names in tech.  Designing physical objects often requires hours or days

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With Neverless, former Revolut execs want to make meme coins easy to buy

Cypto /

There’s an ocean of meme coins beyond Dogecoin, and a new startup called Neverless wants to make it easier to get started with trading crypto, with a particular focus on providing access to small-cap tokens. This is an interesting new crypto startup, founded by three former executives at Revolut, the London-based fintech juggernaut. Phuc To

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Exclusive: Google’s Gemini is forcing contractors to rate AI responses outside their expertise

AI /

Generative AI may look like magic, but behind the development of these systems are armies of employees at companies like Google, OpenAI, and others, known as “prompt engineers” and analysts, who rate the accuracy of chatbots’ outputs to improve their AI. But a new internal guideline passed down from Google to contractors working on Gemini,

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Tracker firm Hapn spilling names of thousands of GPS tracking customers

Security /

GPS tracking firm Hapn is exposing the names of thousands of its customers due to a website bug, TechCrunch has learned. A security researcher alerted TechCrunch in late November to customer names and affiliations — such as the name of their workplace — spilling from one of Hapn’s servers, which TechCrunch has seen.  Hapn, formerly

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Hauler Hero wants to bring waste management software into the 21st century

Startups /

After nearly four years of working in sales at tradesperson software company ServiceTitan, Mark Hoadley (pictured above) was looking for a change and to potentially start something of his own in a similar industry. Hoadley’s brother-in-law, and now co-founder, Ben Sikma, was working on M&A in the waste management space at the time. Sikma discovered

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The DOJ wants a Perplexity executive to testify in its Google antitrust case

Startups /

A U.S. court ruled in August that Google has a search monopoly, and while Google appeals, the Justice Department is figuring out what kind of potential penalties to impose — like breaking off Chrome.  As part of this process, the DOJ wants to call on a specific witness, according to a recent court filing: Dmitry

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Insight VC describes Databricks’ wild $10B deal and the bad advice the CEO ignored

Venture /

It’s been a wild week for investors clawing their way into Databricks’ record-breaking $10 billion fundraising, one of the VCs leading the deal told TechCrunch. “There were calls that went well late into the night, and that’s okay, that’s how good opportunities emerge,” George Mathew, managing director at Insight Partners, described with a grin. Along with

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