TechCrunch+ Roundup: App Store growth tactics, changing SaaS models, ‘AI-induced frenzy’
Given the hype around generative AI, it’s easy to forget that IBM Watson competed on Jeopardy in 2011 — and won a $1M first-place prize.
OpenAI has trained its LLM to confess to bad behavior
OpenAI is testing another new way to expose the complicated processes at work inside large language models. Researchers at the company can make an LLM produce what they call a confession, in which the model explains how it carried out a task and (most of the time) owns up to any bad behavior. Figuring out…
Technology
Catchup is a simple app for reminding yourself to check in with friends and loved ones
In the age of social media, you may feel like you’re keeping up with your friends and family, but the reality is that “liking” their posts isn’t the same thing as reaching out directly to say hello and check in on how they’re doing. That’s where a newly launched app called Catchup can help. This […]
US lawmaker says FBI notified him of email breach linked to Microsoft cloud hack
U.S. House lawmaker Rep. Don Bacon said the FBI warned him that China-backed hackers who used a stolen Microsoft key to raid the email accounts of senior U.S. government officials also accessed his email accounts. In a tweet, the Republican congressman from Nebraska said the FBI notified him on Monday that the Chinese government “hacked […]
The Download: China’s autonomous race, and Kiva’s controversial changes
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. The race to lead China’s autonomous driving market Chinese car companies all seem fixated on one goal: launching their own autonomous navigation services in more and more cities as quickly as possible. In…
Voiceflow, a platform for building conversational AI experiences, raises $15M
The demand for conversational AI — mostly chatbots — has arguably never been higher, riding the publicity wave of systems like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Last year, Gartner predicted that one in 10 agent-customer exchanges will be automated by 2026, an increase from the estimated 1.6% of chats that were handed off to chatbots in 2022. Unsurprisingly, […]
The rise of the tech ethics congregation
Just before Christmas last year, a pastor preached a gospel of morals over money to several hundred members of his flock. Wearing a sport coat, angular glasses, and wired earbuds, he spoke animatedly into his laptop from his tiny glass office inside a co-working space, surrounded by six whiteboards filled with his feverish brainstorming. Sharing…
The race to lead China’s autonomous driving market
Toward the end of a nearly 15-minute video, William Sundin, creator of the ChinaDriven channel on YouTube, gets off the highway and starts driving in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou. Or rather, he allows himself to be driven. For while he’s still in the driver’s seat, the car is now steering, stopping, and changing…
Indian court ruling threatens Google’s advertising revenue model
The Delhi High Court has ruled that Google’s Ads Programme falls under the purview of the trademarks act, meaning the search giant’s use of trademarks as keywords amounts to “use” under the act, in a major decision that may redefine online advertising’s legal landscape. The decision (PDF), delivered by a division bench of Justice Vibhu […]
A merger that’s good for workers and consumers
Thanks to the regulatory process, this deal will significantly enhance competition in the video game industry while securing workers’ rights and consumer interests.
Atomic, GV, & SOSV join the Startup Battlefield judges lineup at TechCrunch Disrupt 2023
The Startup Battlefield pitch competition is a Silicon Valley legend that’s reached far beyond its Bay Area beginnings. It’s a global launching pad for some of the most successful tech companies, including Cloudflare, Dropbox, Fitbit, Mint and Yammer. More than 900 Startup Battlefield alumni companies have generated over 121 exits and more than $9.7 billion […]