Silo, a Bay Area food supply chain startup, has hit a rough patch. TechCrunch has learned that the company on Tuesday laid off roughly 30% of its staff, or north of two dozen employees. Silo has confirmed the headcount reductions, clarifying the cuts were across the board and not focused …...Read More

This is not a joke: According to a job listing, President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign needs someone to manage memes. The “Partner Manager, Content and Meme Pages” hire will “initiate and manage day-to-day operations in engaging the internet’s top content and meme pages.” The job pays up to $85,000. Yes, …...Read More

Meta on Wednesday announced the creation of an AI advisory council with only white men on it. What else would we expect? Women and people of color have been speaking out for decades about being ignored and excluded from the world of artificial intelligence despite them being qualified and playing …...Read More

If you’ve ever wanted to apply to Y Combinator, here’s some inside scoop on how the iconic accelerator goes about choosing companies from someone who knows best: Garry Tan, president and CEO of Y Combinator. The Economic Club of Washington, D.C. hosted Tan Wednesday for a one-on-one interview with Teresa …...Read More

Indian ride-hailing startup BluSmart has started operating in Dubai, TechCrunch has exclusively learned and confirmed with its executive. The move to Dubai, which has been rumored for months, could help counter the likes of Careem, Uber and Hala in the United Arab Emirates’ most populous city. The Gurugram-based startup quietly …...Read More

The FCC has floated a requirement that AI-generated content be disclosed in political ads — but not banned. Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel made the official proposal Wednesday that the FCC investigate and seek comment on such a rule. (The agency already ruled AI-generated robocalls illegal, but that was more about them …...Read More

Want to make a founder’s day, week, month, and possibly career? Refer them to Startup Battlefield 200 at Disrupt 2024! Applications close June 10 at 11:59 p.m. PT. TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield 200 is the world’s preeminent competition for early-stage startups. It’s also the absolute best way for an entrepreneur to …...Read More

Social networking startup and X competitor Bluesky is officially launching DMs (direct messages), the company announced on Wednesday. Later, Bluesky plans to “fully support end-to-end encrypted messaging down the line,” it also said. The launch comes two weeks after the social network teased it would soon be introducing direct messaging …...Read More

The perception in Silicon Valley is that every investor would love to be in business with Peter Thiel. But the venture capital fundraising environment has become so difficult, that even Valar Ventures, one of the VC firms he helped found, has raised a much smaller fund this year compared to …...Read More

The check-in computers at several hotels around the U.S. are running a remote access app, which is leaking screenshots of guest information to the internet. A consumer-grade spyware app has been found running on the check-in systems of at least three Wyndham hotels across the United States, TechCrunch has learned. …...Read More