DoorDash’s new AI-powered ‘SafeChat+’ tool automatically detects verbal abuse
DoorDash hopes to reduce verbally abusive and inappropriate interactions between consumers and delivery people with its new AI-powered feature that automatically detects offensive language. Dubbed “SafeChat+,” DoorDash is leveraging AI technology to review in-app conversations and determine if a customer or Dasher is being harassed. Depending on the scenario, there
Read moreGoogle confirms it’s restricting Gemini election queries globally
If you want to ask Google’s AI chatbot a question about an upcoming election, you will have to do it from a country where there are no elections taking place. TechCrunch has learned that the search giant has started to restrict queries made Gemini when they relate to elections, in
Read moreNew startup from Postgres creator puts the database at heart of software stack
MIT professor Mike Stonebreaker has been at the forefront of database technology for over 50 years. The former Turing Award winner invented the Ingres and Postgres databases and helped launch a number of companies including Streambase Systems (acquired by Tibco in 2013), VoltDB, Tamr and SciDB. Now 80, he knows
Read moreNanonets gets Accel India’s backing to improve AI-based workflow automation
Nanonets, a startup using AI to automate back-office processes, has raised $29 million in a new funding round led by Accel India as it seeks to improve the accuracy of automation processes that involve large amounts of unstructured data. Processing unstructured data from documents like invoices, receipts and purchase orders
Read moreBear Robotics, a robot waiter startup, just picked up $60M from LG
LG Electronics may no longer be a household name in smartphones, but it still sees a big future in gadgets like robots. Today, the company confirmed a $60 million investment in Bear Robotics, the California startup that makes artificial intelligence-powered server robots for restaurants and other venues — autonomous tray
Read moreApplied Intuition lands $6 billion valuation for AI-powered autonomous vehicle software
Autonomous vehicle software company Applied Intuition has raised $250 million in a round that values the startup at $6 billion, as it pushes to bring more artificial intelligence to the automotive, defense, construction and agriculture sectors. The eye-popping funding round is the latest example of investor fervor for AI. Applied
Read moreFrench startup Nijta hopes to protect voice privacy in AI use cases
France-based startup Nijta, whose flagship product Voice Harbor anonimizes voices for AI, raised €2 million in funding from various sources, including deep tech VC fund Elaia. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Read moreInclusivity-focused VC Ada Ventures pulls in $80M for second fund
UK-based Ada Ventures is an unusual VC. Instead of just talking about SaaS or AI, it hunts down founders addressing inclusivity and diversity. Instead of confusing LPs with this methodology, it’s attracted them, thus hitting the $80 million mark for the final close of its second fund (it reached $44.7
Read moreBacked by Leonardo DiCaprio, YC alum SolarMente wants to help democratize solar power in Spain
Barcelona-based cleantech startup SolarMente recently added Leonardo DiCaprio to its cap table, hence becoming the actor's and activist's first investment in the country. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Read moreZomato’s Blinkit sprints to quick commerce dominance in India
Even as quick commerce is slowly fading in many markets and several heavily-funded startups have folded in the past two years, India is emerging as a striking outlier where the model remains vibrant. India’s quick commerce market has witnessed a staggering 10-fold growth between 2021 and 2023, fueled by the
Read more