Technology

The Download: America’s AI lawsuits, and Threads restrictions

July 18, 2023
This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. How judges, not politicians, could dictate America’s AI rules It’s becoming increasingly clear that courts, not politicians, will be the first to determine the limits on how AI is developed and used in…

Want agency in the AI age? Get ready to fight

July 18, 2023
This story originally appeared in The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter on AI. To get stories like this in your inbox first, sign up here. There’s an AI revolution brewing. Last week, Hollywood’s union for actors went on strike, joining a writers’ strike already in progress—the first time these unions have been on strike simultaneously in…

Tractable snaps up $65M led by SoftBank for car and property damage appraisals using AI

July 18, 2023
When it comes to transforming business operations, artificial intelligence holds a lot of promise across many industries. Today, a startup that has been an early mover in the area of applying AI, and specifically computer vision, to the world of insurance is announcing a round of growth funding to continue expanding its business. Tractable — […]

US government launches the Cyber Trust Mark, its long-awaited IoT security labeling program

July 18, 2023
The Biden administration has launched its long-awaited Internet of Things (IoT) cybersecurity labeling program that aims to protect Americans against the myriad of security risks associated with internet-connected devices. The program, officially named the “U.S. Cyber Trust Mark,” aims to help Americans ensure they are buying internet-connected devices that include strong cybersecurity protections against cyberattacks.  […]

Sylvera banks $57M to put carbon offsetting on a path to Net Zero

July 18, 2023
London-based climate intelligence startup Sylvera has closed another chunky funding round — bagging $57 million in Series B funding led by Balderton Capital, with participation from existing investors Index Ventures, Insight Partners, Salesforce Ventures, Speedinvest, Seedcamp and LocalGlobe. New investors Fidelity Strategic Ventures, Bain & Company and 9Yards Capital are also joining the round. The […]

Rice Robotics picks up $7M, powers SoftBank’s office delivery

July 18, 2023
In the crowded enterprise robotics space, the ability to secure key clients is a crucial differentiator for companies. In the case of Hong Kong-based Rice Robotics, the important order has come from SoftBank. Since January 2021, Rice’s robots, with their cute, cartoonish blinking eyes, have been delivering 7-Eleven products to Softbank staff at the company’s […]

Isometric taps $25M to build a registry and science platform focused on carbon removal

July 17, 2023
Carbon removal — technology that aims to remove carbon emissions from the environment by breaking it down and turning it into something less harmful — saw a big splash of attention last year after Stripe, Shopify, Meta, Alphabet and more collectively agreed to pump $1 billion into funding removal startups. Today, a London startup called […]

Are software companies good businesses?

July 17, 2023
The market allowed tech companies to be unprofitable for a while and that era is now ending. But the matter is more nuanced if you think more long term.

How judges, not politicians, could dictate America’s AI rules

July 17, 2023
It’s becoming increasingly clear that courts, not politicians, will be the first to determine the limits on how AI is developed and used in the US. Last week, the Federal Trade Commission opened an investigation into whether OpenAI violated consumer protection laws by scraping people’s online data to train its popular AI chatbot ChatGPT. Meanwhile,…