Facebook is moving further away from the Oculus brand. The company says it is changing the name of their augmented reality and virtual reality organization to “Facebook Reality Labs,” an org which will encompass the company’s AR/VR products under the Oculus, Spark and Portal brands. The company’s AR/VR research division had its title changed from […]
In a nod to the show Parks and Recreation, it’s time to “treat yo self” — with an additional $100 discount on Disrupt 2020 passes. For the next 72-hours only, you can save an extra $100 and get your Disrupt Digital Pro passes for $245 each. Simply head to our website and boom — you […]
Later today, Twilio CEO Jeff Lawson is joining the TechCrunch crew for a live Q&A. The discussion is part of our Extra Crunch Live series that has been live for the last several months. It’s been a good run, with guests like Charles Hudson, Sydney Sykes and Mark Cuban. We’ve also had entrepreneurs swing by, including […]
Zendesk has been offering customers the ability to track customer service statistics for some time, but it has always been a look back. Today, the company announced a new product called Explore Enterprise that lets customers capture that valuable info in real time, and share it with anyone in the organization, whether they have a […]
The COVID-19 pandemic is, understandably, proving to be a major driver for robotics and automation adoption. The already hot categories are proving to be even more appealing as companies look to technology amid the spread of a deadly and highly contagious virus. Warehouses and fulfillment centers are, naturally, a big category for funding. Amazon, which […]
This ain’t your average back-to-school sale but then again, there’s nothing average about TC Sessions: Mobility 2020. This two-day event — October 6-7 — draws the world’s top technologists, investors and researchers determined to invent the future with mobile technology. Achieving that audacious goal requires investing in the next generation of smart visionaries — students. […]
Eden, the office management platform founded by Joe du Bey and Kyle Wilkinson, is today announcing the launch of several new enterprise software features. The company, which offers a marketplace for office managers to procure services like office cleaning, repairs, etc., is looking to offer a more comprehensive platform. The software features include a COVID […]
Google today will begin rolling out several updates to its Chrome web browser, with the goal of increasing user productivity and making the browsing experience faster. Specifically, Google is making Chrome’s tabs and its newer tab groups easier and quicker to use. Under the hood, it promises improvements that will deliver up to 10% faster […]
Trove, a startup that sells a suite of internal compensation tools to other startups, has quietly graduated from this summer’s Y Combinator batch with millions in venture capital and a whopping valuation. A16z and Trove did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The deal likely began after the company joined the famed accelerator […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has left no industry untouched, but the healthcare industry is arguably the one that stands to be transformed the most by the ongoing pandemic. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2020, get the perspectives of two founders who’ve created entirely new healthcare modals with their respective startups on how their companies have adapted to a […]
Facebook is announcing a number of new e-commerce features both within the main Facebook app and on Instagram. The pandemic has forced many businesses to shift online, and Facebook made a big announcement in May around the ability of merchants to create Facebook Shops that are viewable on both Facebook and Instagram. More recently, Instagram […]
Microsoft today announced that Immersive Reader, its service for developers who want to add text-to-speech and reading comprehension tools to their applications, is now generally available. Immersive Reader, which is part of the Azure Cognitive Services suite of AI products, developers get access to a text-to-speech engine, but just as importantly, the service offers tools […]
Perhaps some day in the not-so-distant future, we’ll all be wearing smart glasses. Stranger things have happened. And hey, most people were fairly skeptical in the early days of smartwatches. And while I’m not saying that it will definitely take Apple launching its own pair to accelerate mainstream acceptance à la the Apple Watch, I […]
Microsoft today launched Transcribe in Word, its new transcription service for Microsoft 365 subscribers, into general availability. It’s now available in the online version of Word, with other platforms launching later. In addition, Word is also getting new dictation features, which now allow you to use your voice to format and edit your text, for […]
Palantir, the secretive data analytics startup founded by billionaire investor Peter Thiel, would challenge a government order seeking the company’s encryption keys, according to a leaked document. TechCrunch has obtained a leaked copy of Palantir’s S-1, filed with U.S. regulators to take the company public. We’ve covered some ground already, including looking at Palantir’s financials, […]
Facebook News, the social network’s dedicated news section launched to U.S. audiences in June, is soon expanding to international markets. The company announced today it plans to accelerate its plans to bring the product to non-U.S. markets, including the U.K., Germany, France, India, and Brazil, within the timeframe of six months to a year. As […]
After far too few startups appeared ready to take advantage of warm public market conditions and ecstatic IPO receptions, a deluge of private companies filed to go public yesterday. There was Sumo Logic in the morning and JFrog a bit later on. Unity filed in there as well. Snowflake also dropped, along with Asana later […]
The private launch industry isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, and a new $172 million Series B round of funding for China commercial launch startup iSpace indicates it could be heating up internationally. The new funding was led by Beijing Financial Street Capital Operation Center, CICC Alpha, Taizhonghe Capital and includes participation from existing […]
If 2020 hasn’t been wild enough, there’s an extra special twist going down at Disrupt 2020 beyond the fact that, for the first time ever, the conference will be fully virtual. It also happens to be the show’s 10th anniversary. Time flies when you’re changing the world, eh? As part of Disrupt’s 10th anniversary celebration, […]
The last couple of years have been tough on the smartphone industry, as sales plateaued and eventually eroded. But nothing could have prepared manufacturers for 2020. This was supposed to be the year numbers began bouncing back, courtesy of 5G and some radical new designs. But the real figures have been utterly dismal. According to […]
