Parloa, a conversational AI platform for customer service, raises $66M
Conversational AI platform Parloa has nabbed $66 million in a Series B round of funding, a year after the German startup raised $21 million from a swathe of European investors to propel its international growth. The company is focusing on the U.S. market in particular, where Parloa opened a New
Read moreMadica, a program by Flourish Ventures, steps up pre-seed investing in Africa
Madica, an investment program launched by US-based investor Flourish Ventures to back pre-seed startups in Africa, plans to invest in up to 10 ventures by the end of the year, ramping up its funding efforts after closing three initial deals. Madica disclosed the plans to TechCrunch indicating accelerated investing in
Read moreFrench startup FlexAI exits stealth with $30M to ease access to AI compute
With the current iteration of its product going through its paces with a handful of beta customers, FlexAI will launch its first commercial product later this year. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Read moreGoogle-backed Glance pilots Android lockscreen platform in US
Glance, which operates a lockscreen platform targetting Android smartphones, is setting its sights on the U.S. market. The Indian startup recently commenced a pilot program in partnership with Motorola and Verizon in the U.S., with plans for a full launch in the country later this year, sources familiar with the
Read moreSenate passes a bill forcing TikTok to face a ban if ByteDance doesn’t sell it
The Senate passed a bill, included with the foreign aid package, that will ban TikTok if its owner, ByteDance, doesn’t sell it within a year. Senators passed the bill 79-18 Tuesday after the House passed it with overwhelming majority over the weekend. President Joe Biden will have to sign the
Read moreThe all-electric Mercedes G-Class ratchets up the tech and off-road capability
The Mercedes-Benz G-Class — the rugged off-road powerhouse that launched in 1979 and has since become a brutalist status symbol — has gone electric. This is, in many ways, Mercedes’ most prestigious car, a model more prized for its presence and exclusivity than its power and capability. Going electric, then,
Read moreChoosing a Computer Language for a Project
Julia. Scala. Lua. TypeScript. Haskell. Go. Dart. Various computer languages new and old are sometimes proposed as better alternatives to mainstream languages. But compared to mainstream choices like Python, C, C++ and Java (cf. Tiobe Index)—are they worth using? Certainly it depends a lot on the planned use: is it
Read moreTesla’s new growth plan is centered around mysterious cheaper models
Tesla’s been undergoing some major changes, and now we have a sense of why: The company says it is upending its product roadmap because of “pressure” on EV sales. The new and accelerated plan now includes “more affordable models” that the company claims will be launched next year. Or if
Read moreA cheaper Tesla is back on the menu
The Model 3 might get an affordable younger sibling in 2025. | Image: Tesla Tesla says it will build more affordable electric vehicles — perhaps as soon as 2025 — refuting recent reports that Tesla CEO Elon Musk had canceled plans for a cheaper “Model 2” vehicle in favor of
Read moreTesla profits drop 55%, company says EV sales ‘under pressure’ from hybrids
Tesla profits fell 55% to $1.13 billion in the first quarter from the same year-ago period as a protracted EV price-cutting strategy and “several unforeseen challenges” cut into the automaker’s bottom line. Tesla reported revenue of $21.3 billion in the first quarter, a 9% drop from the first quarter of 2023.
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