Most apps that help you learn languages feature a user experience that has you selecting options or swiping away wrong answer cards — you’re more or less interacting with a machine. Language-learning app Praktika is adopting a different approach: It lets you create personalized AI-powered avatars to replicate the experience …...Read More
Praktika raises $35.5M to use AI avatars to make learning languages feel more natural
Humane, the creator of the $700 Ai Pin, is reportedly seeking a buyer
Humane, the company behind the much-hyped Ai Pin that launched to less-than-glowing reviews last month, is on the hunt for a buyer, Bloomberg reported citing anonymous sources. The company has reportedly priced itself between $750 million and $1 billion, and the sale process is in the early stages, Bloomberg cited …...Read More
Oyo, once valued at $10 billion, shelves IPO plans for second time
Oyo, the once high-flying Indian budget hotel chain, has withdrawn its IPO application from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the second time in a fresh blow to its already diminished ambitions. The Gurugram-headquartered startup, which at its peak commanded a valuation of $10 billion, pulled the …...Read More
Ore Energy emerges from stealth to build utility-scale batteries that last days, not hours
Where Aytac Yilmaz lives in the Netherlands, the sun might not appear for days on end, which can really crimp the output of the country’s solar panels. Wind turbines might make up some of the shortfall, but what if the wind disappears at the same time? Enter long-duration energy storage, …...Read More
Paytm counts costs of regulatory clampdown as losses swell
One 97 Communications, the parent company of India’s leading digital payments platform Paytm, reported a widening of its consolidated net loss to $66.1 million in the quarter ending March, compared to a loss of $20.11 million in the same quarter last year as it grappled with a regulatory clampdown. For …...Read More
In Seoul summit, heads of states and companies commit to AI safety
Government officials and AI industry executives agreed on Tuesday to apply elementary safety measures in the fast-moving field, and establish an international safety research network. Nearly six months after the inaugural global summit on AI safety at Bletchley Park in England, Britain and South Korea are hosting the AI safety …...Read More
VCs wanted FarmboxRx to become a meal kit, the company bootstrapped instead
Some startups choose to bootstrap from the beginning while others find themselves forced into self funding by a lack of investor interest or a business model that doesn’t fit traditional VC. FarmboxRx decided to bootstrap because founder Ashley Tyrner didn’t like the advice she was getting from potential backers. Tyrner …...Read More
Uber and Lyft's ride-hailing deal with Minnesota comes with a cost
Uber and Lyft drivers in Minnesota will see higher pay thanks to a deal between the state and the country’s two largest ride-hailing companies. The upshot: a new law that gives some protections to drivers while placing limits on state government. The bill, which Gov. Tim Walz has supported publicly …...Read More
a16z's American Dynamism team launches program to introduce technical minds to VC
Andreessen Horowitz’s American Dynamism fund has established a new fellowship program aimed at introducing top engineers and technologists to venture investing, a move that could help the firm less obvious sources for VC talent. The American Dynamism fund launched in 2023 with the broad aim of supporting companies building in …...Read More
Teen fintech Copper had to emergency discontinue its banking, debit products
Another fintech startup, and its customers, has been gravely impacted by the implosion of banking-as-a-service startup Synapse. Copper Banking, a digital banking service aimed at teens, notified its customers on May 12 that it would be discontinuing bank deposit accounts and debit cards on May 13. In a letter to …...Read More
