Startups

Chinese VCs are hounding failed founders to claw back their investments

In the U.S., it’s accepted that most startups fail — and when that happens, VCs (generally) accept their losses and move on. But that’s not the case in China, where VCs are trying to claw back their investments in failed startups by pursuing the personal assets of their founders in court, The Financial Times reports. […]

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Fermata uses computer vision to detect diseases and pests in plants

When Valeria Kogan started her Ph.D. program in bioinformatics, the scientific field that uses computation and software to analyze biological data, in 2017, she imagined her career would always be within the fields of mathematics, medicine, or biology. But after the first AI boom in the late 2010s, she got an intriguing opportunity in a

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Kombu is changing the way we make our ‘booch’ with its modern kombucha brewer

Kombucha, a fermented tea that has been around for thousands of years and was once considered a niche health drink, is currently experiencing a surge in popularity as more consumers look for gut-friendly beverages. However, this fizzy drink isn’t exactly cheap, and home brewing can be messy, overly complicated, and time-consuming. Additionally, the supplies needed

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Kombu is changing the way we make our ‘booch’ with its modern kombucha brewer at CES 2025

Kombucha, a fermented tea that has been around for thousands of years and was once considered a niche health drink, is currently experiencing a surge in popularity as more consumers look for gut-friendly beverages. However, this fizzy drink isn’t exactly cheap, and home brewing can be messy, overly complicated, and time-consuming. Additionally, the supplies needed

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The US just added Tencent to its list of ‘Chinese military’ companies

While the Chinese internet giant Tencent is best-known for its super-app WeChat, it’s also a major investor in U.S. tech companies and startups. Some of its most notable and still active investments include Reddit, Snap, and Fortnite creator Epic Games. Things might get a little awkward, though, because Tencent was designated a “Chinese military company”

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Inside the wild fall and last-minute revival of Bench, the VC-backed accounting startup that imploded over the holidays

Friday, December 27, was supposed to be the start of a relaxing holiday weekend. But it was chaos for thousands of small business owners who use Bench, an accounting and tax startup based in Canada that raised $113 million from investors like Bain Capital Ventures and Shopify. That morning, they found themselves unable to log

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Generative AI funding reached new heights in 2024

If there was any doubt, the generative AI bubble didn’t burst in 2024. Investments in generative AI, which encompasses a range of AI-powered apps, tools, and services to generate text, images, videos, speech, music, and more, reached new heights last year. According to data from financial tracker PitchBook compiled for TechCrunch, generative AI companies worldwide

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Peter Thiel-backed venture debt firm Tacora raises $268.7M for new fund

Tacora Capital, a Texas firm that specializes in venture debt, has raised $268.7 million for its second fund, according to a new SEC filing. Tacora’s inaugural fund in 2022 raised about $350 million, including $250 million from Peter Thiel — the prominent Republican billionaire and investor — in what was considered an “unusually large investment”

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A look back on my favorite episodes of TechCrunch’s Found podcast

TechCrunch’s Found podcast, which has brought listeners the stories behind the startups since April 2022, released its final episode today. I’ve been one of the hosts of Found since November 2022 and in that time have spoken to more than 75 founders about the startups they are building. These founders hail from many different backgrounds

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