New data highlights the race to build more empathetic language models
Measuring AI progress has usually meant testing scientific knowledge or logical reasoning – but while the major benchmarks still focus on left-brain logic skills, there’s been a quiet push within AI companies to make models more emotionally intelligent. As foundation models compete on soft measures like user preference and “feeling
Read moreFacebook Group admins complain of mass bans — Meta says it’s fixing the problem
After a wave of mass bans affecting Instagram and Facebook users alike, Meta users are now complaining that Facebook Groups are also being impacted by mass suspensions. According to individual complaints and organized efforts on sites like Reddit to share information, the bans have affected thousands of groups both in
Read moreIn just 4 months, AI medical scribe Abridge doubles valuation to $5.3B
Abridge nabbed a $300 million Series E led by a16z, months after it closed its previous $250 million fundraise. The 7-year-old Abridge is widely considered to be the leader in the increasingly crowded AI-powered medical scribe market, largely due to its early entry and integration with Epic Systems, the dominant
Read moreThe All-In Podcast’s $1,200 tequila has already sold out
Their version of the Mexican spirit cost a jaw-dropping $1,200 per bottle, but only 750 bottles were made. The stacked poker-chip container was inspired by the “besties'” love of the card game.
Read moreiPhone customers upset by Apple Wallet ad pushing F1 movie
However well-received the film may be, iPhone users don't necessarily want their built-in utilities, like their digital wallet, marketing to them.
Read moreChrome for Android now lets you move the address bar to the bottom, too
Google Chrome’s web browser for Android devices is finally catching up to the notable design change that Safari made with the 2021 introduction of iOS 15: it’s offering a way to move the address bar to the bottom of the screen too. The company announced on Tuesday that the latest
Read moreElevenLabs releases a standalone voice generation app
Voice AI company ElevenLabs just released a standalone mobile app for iOS and Android users to generate voice clips from text. Until now, if you had to generate samples using ElevenLabs’ AI-powered voice libraries, you had to rely on its web app. Now, you can use its mobile app to
Read moreFeds question Ford in hands-free driving investigation
The top federal vehicle safety regulator has sent Ford an exhaustive list of questions about its hands-free driver-assistance system known as BlueCruise. It's the latest development in an investigation that started more than one year ago following two fatal crashes involving the software.
Read moreMedha Agarwal, Jyoti Bansal, and Jennifer Neundorfer on what makes a pitch land at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025
Perfect your pitch for maximum impact. Investors hear hundreds of pitches, but only a few stand out. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, hear directly from Medha Agarwal, general partner, defy.vc; Jyoti Bansal, CEO and co-founder, Harness; Jennifer Neundorfer, co-founder and managing partner, January Ventures as they share what grabs their attention,
Read moreWispr Flow raises $30M from Menlo Ventures for its AI-powered dictation app
Startups developing voice AI technology and applications are having their moment. Model builders like ElevenLabs and Cartesia have raised millions of dollars in the last few months. Applications such as AI-powered notetaker Granola, and meeting tools Read AI and Fireflies AI have also received investor attention and backing. Continuing the
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