Trump admin freezes EV charging program that gave Tesla millions
The Department of Transportation has paused funding for a $5 billion EV charging infrastructure program that Tesla has received at least $31 million from. The move is widely viewed to be illegal. It’s the latest attempt from the Trump administration to hack away at federally funded renewable energy projects around
Read moreFintech Rapyd seeks funding at $3.5B valuation, a steep drop from $9B
Rapyd Financial Network is reportedly looking to raise $300 million in a new funding at a steep valuation cut from its 2021 high. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Read moreMusk promises to reinstate DOGE staffer linked to racist account
Marko Elez, the 25-year-old staffer Department of Government Efficiency staffer linked to a social media profile with racist posts, “will be brought back,” shortly after he resigned, Elon Musk announced on X. Elez resigned from his role where he reportedly had the ability to rewrite code in sensitive payments systems
Read moreDOGE wreaked havoc on the government in just one week
Within the past week, Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)-affiliated staffers have gained unprecedented access to sensitive US financial systems with data on millions of Americans, claimed to shut down one federal agency without an act of Congress, and invaded numerous government agencies. They’ve been opposed by
Read moreTrump administration halts $5 billion EV charging program that benefited Tesla
NEVI-funded Tesla Supercharger in Frisco, Colorado. | Image: NEVI The Trump administration’s war on electric cars continues with the halt of a national program that sends money to states to install EV charging equipment. It was the latest move by President Donald Trump to reverse Biden-era EV policies — even
Read moreVC Mike Ghaffary is looking for the job-creating AI startup that doesn’t yet exist
Ghaffary is looking to fund startups using AI to create high-paying jobs, rather than replace them. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Read moreGerman court orders X to give data access to democracy researchers ahead of federal elections
Under European Union law, X is one of a handful of major social media platforms that has a duty to facilitate public interest researchers’ access to support the study of systemic risks — such as to elections and other democratic processes. But the Elon Musk-owned company formerly known as Twitter
Read moreStandard Bank Connect Relaunches Device Financing Service
Standard Bank’s Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO), Standard Bank Connect, has announced the relaunch of its device offering, bringing customers a range of highly sought-after tech brands and unique financing terms. Customers can now purchase devices from leading brands such as Apple, Samsung, Huawei, Honor, Vivo, Lenovo, HP, and Mecer,
Read moreHiveclass, a platform for virtual PE classes for kids, raises $1.5M
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020 and schools transitioned to online learning, both Joe Titus and Paul Suhr were concerned about how to maintain their children’s activity levels in the absence of mandatory physical education classes and sports. The two friends’ solution was Hiveclass, a New York-based edtech platform
Read moreApple ordered to open encrypted user accounts globally to UK spying
Apple has reportedly been ordered by the UK government to create a backdoor that would give security officials access to users’ encrypted iCloud backups. If implemented, British security services would have access to the backups of any user worldwide, not just Brits, and Apple would not be permitted to alert
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