Google today announced Project Bloks, a new open hardware platform that allows developers, designers and educators to build physical programming experiences that can help kids (5+) learn to code. While Google worked together with design firm IDEO to build a reference kit, the idea here is to provide a platform that others can use to build their own devices. Google’s team provides the… Read More
The tech hype-cycle works something like this: Some driver triggers a flurry of investments in a particular “theme,” which in turn feeds news flow, panel discussions at conferences and a procession of expert “talking heads.” This febrile atmosphere all too often results in companies that are more noise than substance and an increasingly congested marketplace, which makes… Read More
If you’ve ever gnawed your way through a plastic bottle to get out the last delicious drops of soap you’ll be pleased to learn that researchers at The Ohio State University have created a type of plastic containing small structures that “cradle the droplets of soap aloft above tiny air pockets.” In other words, the soap never touches the bottle so it never sticks.… Read More
People seem to like editing photos through social media, which comes as no surprise with today’s announcement from Twitter: stickers. Made to be plastered over your new photos, Twitter is making sure that emojis, props, accessories, and anything else of the sort is available to add to that penchant of decorating images you post online.
Twitter’s new stickers are also connected… Read More
Two-time entrepreneur Jason Lemkin just closed a debut venture fund with $70 million called SaaStr Fund. It’s an impressive feat and the latest in a string of interesting opportunities that Lemkin has created for himself since selling his most recent company, EchoSign, to Adobe four years ago.
It started with blogging. Lemkin also began actively answering questions about SaaS… Read More
Bee Partners in San Francisco has raised a $30 million fund, its second, to lead investments in very early stage startups based in the U.S. Founded in 2009, the firm is best-known as the first investor in TubeMogul, now a publicly traded adtech company. Bee was also an early backer of the crowdfunding platform Indiegogo, drone tech startup Skycatch, the second-hand fashion marketplace Tradesy… Read More
Back in March, we reported how Amazon was poised to up its stakes in the educational publishing market with the launch of a free platform called Inspire for teachers and others to post and share education resources online. Today, the company has confirmed it is doing just that. It has announced Amazon Inspire, an online education resources (OER) platform for teachers to source free… Read More
“We went through 45 mechanical iterations of Cozmo,” explains Boris Sofman. “This was a huge, hugely complex problem of mechanical engineering, industrial design and character design. The goal to make a character that had the size, shape and capabilities, form factor and practicality of a character that wanted to do all that we could do.”
The result is surprisingly small. Read More
Uber already integrates with Spotify so riders can pick their favorite tunes to jam to on their trip, but now Pandora is teaming up with the rideshare giant to do the same — this time for drivers. It’s not clear how many riders actually use the Spotify integration but not many drivers seem to have the set up to use it. Anecdotally, one Uber driver told me he didn’t even know… Read More
Orbital Insight, a three-year-old, Palo Alto, Ca.-based geospatial big data company, has just raised $15 million in Series B funding led by previous investor GV, with participation from CME Ventures and earlier backers Sequoia Capital, Lux Capital, and Bloomberg Beta. Together, with an investment and development agreement from In-Q- Tel (the CIA’s venture arm), the company… Read More
If you’re done with selfie sticks and are looking for what comes next in the narcissistic world of self-photography, look no further than Hover Camera, a new “personal” drone that gives you a different — more aerial — view of you and your life. Hover Camera is a tiny foldable drone that hovers around you, controlled by a compatible smartphone app, snapping 4k… Read More
American eBay sellers will soon gain access to Africa’s biggest consumer markets. This comes via a new partnership between the U.S. e-commerce giant and online shopping startup MallforAfrica.com, set to go live July 2016. Read More
Uber China is repositioning itself as an all-in-one solution for transportation, food and entertainment. At TechCrunch Shanghai, Uber China VP of Operations and Regional General Manager of Central China Kate Wang showed off Uber’s new vision for China — one that includes two new offerings, UberLIFE and Uber + Travel, which will roll out across China this year. All-in-one solutions… Read More
Recent developments in the hardware world show just how far China’s star has risen and how dominant the country has become in the world of technology hardware manufacturing, development, and innovation. And the physical impact of these products is only just beginning to shape the direction the tech industry will take in years to come. Read More
The recent ubiquity of 3D printers and innovations in prosthetic design, manufacturing and distribution offer a viable solution for the millions of people living with limb loss around the world. In the United States alone, close to 200,000 amputations are performed each year, yet, with prosthetics priced between $5,000 and $50,000, having one can almost be considered a luxury. Read More
Accessibility, conceptually, is much more than just the discrete “accessibility options for people with disabilities”. At its heart, accessibility is about just that: access. You don’t need to have a disability to benefit from it. Read More
Silicon Valley is justifiably seen as the geographical center of digital innovation. From Google and Facebook to Uber and Netflix, the Valley is home to many global technology leaders. However, when searching for the next big startup, the time has come to look beyond Silicon Valley. Read More
The sales tech stack is being built as we speak, and it’s happening in lockstep with the move from the one-to-many work of demand generation, to the one-to-one world of account-based sales and marketing. Read More
