TechCrunch Startup News | Podcast on Podbay

TechCrunch Startup News

TechCrunch

Listen to select TechCrunch articles on startups coverage—who's raising, who's exiting, who's changing the world.

MCP startup Runlayer accuses Rippling of stealing its product idea; plus, Ozlo’s Sleepbuds 2 build on Bose’s sleep earbud legacy

Runlayer is suing Rippling after Rippling evaluated the startup's MCP gateway product and then opted to build one itself. Also, Ozlo unveiled Sleepbuds 2, an updated version of its original product that tackles key areas of improvement, including battery life, connectivity, and sound quality.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 29

8 min

Antares raises $470M to build nuclear reactors for the US military; plus, Thea Energy lands $20M federal grant to build its magnets for fusion reactors

Antares has raised $470 million to build small modular reactors — 100 kW to 1 MW — for U.S. Air Force bases. Also, fusion power startup Thea Energy snagged a $20 million award from ARPA-E to scale production of its high-temperature superconducting magnets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 28

7 min

AI chip startup Etched defies skeptics; plus, Imagi raises $4.5M to help teach students how to vibe code

Etched, founded by three Harvard dropouts, has created new chips and memory components that speed up inference on any AI model -- no GPUs required, it says. Also, Imagi announced a $4.5 million seed round, with investors including Brighteye Ventures, Day One Capital, and artist Wil.i.am. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 24

9 min

Colossal Biosciences reportedly in talks to raise new capital at $20B–$30B valuation; plus, Passionfroot raises $15M to expand its B2B creator marketplace to the US

Colossal Biosciences is in talks to raise new funding at a $20 billion to $30 billion valuation, Axios reported. Also, Passionfroot, a German startup building a marketplace connecting B2B creators with brands, has raised $15M in a Series A round led by Insight Partners. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 23

7 min

Gritt exits stealth with $34 million for robots to build solar plants; Bluecore Energy raises $10M to build portable nuclear reactors

Gritt is coming out of stealth with $34 million and plan to automate the hardest tasks on construction sites. Also, maritime nuclear energy startup Bluecore Energy has raised $10 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Slauson & Co. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 22

9 min

Nuclear startup Valar Atomics in talks to raise new funding at $6B valuation; plus, Databricks hits $188B valuation, extending its run as AI’s favorite second act

The potential deal highlights a growing trend of complex, multi-stage funding rounds that mask true entry prices. Also, Databricks has remade its image into an AI company and has published research on the cost savings of open weight AI models for coding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 21

9 min

Applied Computing wants to give oil and gas operators an AI model for the entire plant, plus, AI-powered travel agency Fora hits unicorn status

Applied Computing has raised a $20M Series A to build a foundation AI model for the oil, gas and petrochemical industry. Also, travel agency Fora announced a $60 million Series D round led by Forerunner and Tactile Ventures, valuing the company at $1 billion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 20

7 min

Why AMI Labs’ Alexandre LeBrun won’t call his AI ‘AGI’ or ‘superintelligence’; plus, Lululemon backs nylon recycling startup Syntetica

While everyone in AI is chasing "superintelligence." Alexandre LeBrun, CEO of Yann LeCun’s world model startup, AMI Labs, dismisses the word. Also, Syntetica, a French startup that has developed a novel approach to recycling nylon, has already obtained big-name partners and investors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 17

11 min

Rime picks up $24M Series A to help enterprises field customer calls; plus, the next trillion-dollar AI business is implementation, not models

Rime is handling over 100 million calls each month across multiple companies Also, Anthropic-backed Ode launches as AI labs bet that embedding forward-deployed engineers inside enterprises is the key to accelerating enterprise AI adoption. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 16

11 min

Hermes agent maker Nous Research in talks for new funding at $1.5B valuation; plus, Pinwheel launches a retro-inspired landline phone for kids

The company is raising at least $75 million, led by Robot, with significant participation from USV and other prominent investors. Also, kid-friendly tech company Pinwheel announced the launch of a new landline phone designed to let children stay connected without the distractions of a smartphone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 15

6 min