Razer’s not your average startup. For one thing, there’s the fact that the company has roots dating back to 1998, making it enough to vote or buy a lottery ticket here in the US (except in Nebraska, Louisiana and Iowa, apparently). Also, the company has devoted a good number of its resources toward funding and supporting other startups through ventures like OSVR and Razer zVentures,… Read More
Twitter is increasing its focus on live streaming today with the launch of a new Notification button on its app that lets you subscribe to be alerted when someone you follow starts live-streaming. When you receive the alert, you can immediately join the broadcast with just a tap. The feature works both for alerting users to new streams from Periscope, as well as for content from… Read More
Tesla topping the 300 mile per charge rating with its new 100 kWh battery was a big deal, but a new zero emission bus debuted today by Proterra has actually managed 600 miles out of a full battery in testing. In a real-world setting, Proterra’s new Catalyst E2 will probably manage somewhere between 194 and 350 miles in actual use settings – but that’s plenty according to… Read More
While not every movie can be Mr. Lovejoy, robots can now help producers find great films by sorting and scoring scripts based on actors, plot, and endings. Think of it as a robotic replacement for the Hollywood page. The startup that does this is called Scriptbook and it automatically reads and scores scripts, offering Hollywood fat cats the ability to choose winners over flops. The company… Read More
In a wide-ranging interview with TechCrunch reporter Frederic Lardinois today at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco, Twilio co-founder and CEO Jeff Lawson talked about the trials of going public, why paying attention to the stock price is unproductive, and how bots are overrated. It’s certainly interesting that the leader of one of the premiere communications companies today thinks bots… Read More
Razer originally started as a hardware company making mice, keyboards and other peripherals optimised for dedicated computer gaming, with its mantra being “For Gamers, By Gamers.” Now, 18 years into its life, it’s changing things up a bit. While the company continues to build hardware and its newer software business, Razer is now also announcing zVentures, a new… Read More
eBay today is launching a new program that aims to capitalize on the large number of older iPhones and other mobile devices poised to hit the resale market, thanks to the launch of the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models, announced last week. Called “Quick Sale,” the new program is powered by eBay Valet – the service where eBay pairs consumers with power sellers who… Read More
Europe’s top court, the CJEU, has been asked to rule on whether a privacy-related legal action brought against Facebook can be treated as a class action or not. Read More
Blavity, the new media and lifestyle site for the young and black in America, takes on meaningful subjects like the Black Lives Matter movement, NFL player protests and discrimination from Airbnb. The site, which showcases BuzzFeed-like content such as “15 times athletes joined Colin Kaepernick’s national anthem protest,” reaches about 7 million unique visitors per month and… Read More
Today at Disrupt SF 2016, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins sat down with TechCrunch’s Fitz Tepper to talk about the future of the Fantasy sports site, launching a whole new mobile app from the stage. Robins also confirmed that DraftKings is still in “on and off” talks to merge with FanDuel, its biggest competitor, and has been for “the past year and a half or so.”… Read More
Google today launched a new application for iOS users called “Cardboard Camera,” which allows you to create 3D, 360-degree photos using your mobile device’s camera. The app was previously available only on Android, following its launch in December 2015, but didn’t yet include a social sharing feature. Using the new version of Cardboard Camera, you can take VR photos… Read More
After a several month CEO search, Jaunt has announced that they’ve poached Hearst exec George Kliavkoff to take over at the VR studio. Kliavkoff served as co-president of Hearst’s Entertainment & Syndication division. During his time at Hearst, Kliavkoff handled interests in cable networks like ESPN, Lifetime, A&E and History while also handling television content and… Read More
Earlier this summer, Facebook began to disable messaging in its mobile web app in order to push people to use its mobile Messenger app. However, this morning at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2016, Messenger head David Marcus said that the option to use the mobile web experience isn’t going away entirely. Instead, the company is selectively disabling the mobile web view for users of certain… Read More
Today, live on the TechCrunch Disrupt stage, CrunchBase announced CrunchBase Pro, a major update to its heavily used startup database. CrunchBase will still offer the same free features to longtime users, but more advanced search capabilities, market trend analytics, and lists to track industries, people, companies, and investors will add premium value for power users. The new features… Read More
Facebook today filled the biggest hole in its chatbot platform. Messenger bots can accept payments natively without sending users to an external website, Facebook’s head of Messenger David Marcus announced today onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2016. Finally, the credit card info people already have stored in Facebook or Messenger can be used to instantly make purchases in bots that are… Read More
Phase 1: Kill SMS. Phase 2: Kill Skype, FaceTime, and your phone. Phase 3: Profit? Facebook is making strides towards becoming a multi-media communication juggernaut, its head of Messenger David Marcus announced today at TechCrunch Disrupt SF. Out of Messenger’s one-billion users, 300 million people use its audio and video calling features each month. That’s around the size of… Read More
The 3D printing industry has had a rough go of it, of late. In a few short years, it’s gone from technology darling to victim of its own industry hype, a move that has had serious implications for some of the industry’s biggest players. But as the consumer-facing wing of the space has seemingly hit the skids, another aspect of the technology is gaining serious momentum. Late… Read More
TechCrunch is pleased to announce the 23 startups selected to participate in the Disrupt SF 2016 Startup Battlefield. Over the next three days, these companies will compete on tech’s biggest stage for $50,000 and the coveted Disrupt Cup. The Battlefield represents the crème de la crème; the startups onstage represent just over 2.5 percent of those that applied. Startup Battlefield… Read More
Disrupt is a place where dreams come true. Over the course of a year or two, folks can go from sitting in the audience or hosting a booth in the Startup Alley to launching a new company on the Battlefield stage. Or better, to being invited to speak as one of our esteemed guests. Speaking of, we have an incredible lineup in store for you today, including chats with Facebook’s David… Read More
Given all of the trouble, tech companies are beginning to marshall their resources and fight back against trolls and misinformation campaigns. Read More
