February 22, 2025

US AI Safety Institute could face big cuts

The National Institute of Standards and Technology could fire as many as 500 staffers, according to multiple reports — cuts that further threaten a fledgling AI safety organization. Axios reported this week that the US AI Safety Institute (AISI) and Chips for America, both part of NIST, would be “gutted” by layoffs targeting probationary employees […]

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September 2023

WhatsApp users in India can now pay businesses with credit card, other UPI apps

September 20, 2023
WhatsApp is rolling out a new feature in India that will allow users in its largest market to pay businesses using a variety of payment options from within the instant messaging app. The Meta-owned app on Wednesday said it has partnered with PayU and Bengaluru-headquartered Razorpay to add support for payments via credit and debit […]

Meta is expanding its verification program to businesses

September 20, 2023
Meta announced today that it is expanding Meta Verified to businesses after first launching it for creators in March. The company is initially testing the verification program on Facebook and Instagram, with merchants in select geographies, but it plans to roll it out to businesses on WhatsApp at a later stage. Businesses can purchase a […]

WhatsApp is introducing Flows for a richer in-app shopping experience

September 20, 2023
WhatsApp is bolstering its shopping experience for both merchants and users through a new feature called Flows, which will let users complete tasks such as picking a seat on a flight or booking an appointment without leaving the app. Merchants will have building blocks ranging from a text box to a calendar and a seat […]

Why Shaquille O’Neal led edtech startup Edsoma’s $2.5M seed round

September 20, 2023
Edsoma, a startup that developed an AI-powered reading, education and communication platform for children, raised $2.5 million in a seed round led by Shaquille O’Neal. The trick? Founder and CEO Kyle Wallgren didn’t ask the NBA superstar and philanthropist for money. “He didn’t ask me for money; what he asked was actually ‘I would like […]

Plaid’s Zack Perret on Visa, valuations and privacy

September 20, 2023
When Plaid won TechCrunch Disrupt 2013’s Hackathon, it wasn’t even Plaid yet. The team was building a web app that let users view their credit card and debit card transactions on a map. But in the process they figured out how to solve the challenge of integrating banks with the app, planting the seeds of […]

Reed Jobs on how his venture firm tackles cancer

September 20, 2023
Reed Jobs’ new venture firm can change the lives of the estimated 18.1 million diagnosed cancer patients worldwide. Yosemite, Jobs’ fund for cancer-fighting biotech, launched in August with $200 million in funding from investors like MIT, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and John Doerr. Jobs first became interested in oncology as a teen after his […]

Somani’s Offline secures $2M to build community for top Indian startup founders

September 20, 2023
Utsav Somani, who helped AngelList launch in India and oversaw its local operations for five years, is gearing up to find more ways to help founders. On Wednesday, the entrepreneur said he had raised $2 million for his new venture, called Offline, that will aim to bring the top Indian startup founders together and form […]

Vivek Ramaswamy is in his TikTok era, with Jake Paul’s endorsement

September 20, 2023
Vivek Ramaswamy is on TikTok now, thanks to Jake Paul. In the week since he joined the platform, Ramaswamy has amassed about 33,000 followers, secured an endorsement from one of the most polarizing creators in YouTube history and attempted to establish himself as the millennial politician who’s cool enough to use TikTok but anti-woke enough […]