Astranis unveils Omega 'MicroGEO' satellites for beaming dedicated broadband down from high orbit

Astranis has taken the wraps off a new generation of communications satellites that will serve broadband to customers on Earth from geostationary orbit, but faster and smaller than any comsat up there. They believe the future of orbital communications is not just in higher orbits, but in the possibility of …...Read More

Apple News is testing a game that kind of looks like NYT Connections

Apple News is testing a new game for iOS 17.5 called Quartiles, which requires players to organize a grid of 20 syllables into 5 four-syllable words. Spotted by Gadget Hacks, the interface for Quartiles looks a lot like the New York Times’ newest hit, Connections. Did Apple News sherlock the …...Read More

Hundreds of creators sign letter slamming Meta's limit on political content

If you haven’t been seeing much political content on Instagram lately, there’s a reason for that. Since March, Instagram and Threads have instituted a new default setting that limits political content you see from people you’re not following. Hundreds of creators, convened by GLAAD and Accountable Tech, have signed an …...Read More

Space diversity initiative builds steam with new leadership and K-12 focused National Space Day

A growing effort to attract more women and people of color into the space industry has shared some of its first results and a new occasion to rally around: National Space Day, May 3, when thousands of students will learn that not only can they do space stuff, but they …...Read More

A comprehensive list of 2023 & 2024 tech layoffs

A comprehensive list of 2023 & 2024 tech layoffs From major layoffs at Google, Amazon and Microsoft to small fintech startups and apps The tech-wide reckoning that began in 2022 and ran throughout into 2023 has continued into this year. And while 2024’s losses are not at that scale, they’re …...Read More

YouTube is switching to read-only comments for kids in supervised experiences

YouTube’s comments section, historically, has had a bad reputation, but a change rolling out could prevent kids from wading into the comments cesspool. In an email to parents who supervise a child’s account, the company announced the introduction of a “read-only” comments option on their child’s supervised experience on YouTube. …...Read More

Checkr, the background-screening platform last valued at $5B, cuts 32% of workforce

Checkr, a 10-year-old startup that offers employee background checks and was last valued at $5 billion in April 2022, has laid off 382 employees as companies are not significantly hiring talent. TechCrunch exclusively learned that Checkr conducted the layoffs across all departments and different levels on Tuesday. The San Francisco–based …...Read More

Y Combinator's latest cohort had only one LatAm startup in large part because of AI

Brazilian startup Salvy, a mobile carrier for businesses, was the only company based in Latin America in Y Combinator’s latest batch, the accelerator confirmed to TechCrunch. That’s a significant drop compared to cohorts that went through the accelerator during COVID when it was remote, but also more recent classes: There …...Read More

Google brings AI-powered editing tools, like Magic Editor, to all Google Photos users for free

Google Photos is getting an AI upgrade. On Wednesday, the tech giant announced that a handful of enhanced editing features previously limited to Pixel devices and paid subscribers — including its AI-powered Magic Editor — will now make their way to all Google Photos users for free. This expansion also …...Read More

AT&T notifies regulators after customer data breach

AT&T has begun notifying U.S. state authorities and regulators of a security incident after confirming that millions of customer records posted online last month were authentic. In a legally required filing with Maine’s attorney general’s office, the U.S. telco giant said it sent out letters notifying more than 51 million …...Read More