Monzo, Britain’s biggest digital bank, is still synonymous with its neon debit cards, extensive use of emojis, and free spending abroad. But it’s no longer just trying to be cool; it’s trying to become a major financial institution. That shift, from an upstart fintech beloved by millennials into a mature, sustainable business, is what makes...
Category: Tech Crunch
Sylndr, with fresh $15.7M, allows users to buy, sell, finance, and service used cars in Egypt
Cairo-based Sylndr has raised $15.7 million as it expands beyond online used car sales into auto financing, servicing, and tools for dealers. Development Partners International’s Nclude Fund led the round. The company, which operates in Egypt’s fast-growing but under-digitized vehicle market, said the latest round includes both fresh equity and previously unannounced seed financing. Sylndr...
Waymo gets OK to expand robotaxi service into more of Silicon Valley
The company is also aiming to unlock access to the San Francisco International Airport, although those plans are on a much longer timeline.
Klarna’s revenue per employee soars to nearly $1M thanks to AI efficiency push
Last year, Klarna announced a significant initiative to leverage its internally developed AI systems, powered by OpenAI, across its operations. This wasn’t empty talk for the buy now, pay later giant. The company not only ended its pricey contract with Salesforce CRM, but also curtailed its hiring efforts, allowing AI to do some of the...
Waymo and Uber are giving some riders early access to Atlanta robotaxi service
Atlanta is the second city to get the so-called “Waymo on Uber” service. The companies launched the service, which matches riders with a
Uber eyes B2B logistics push in India through state-backed open commerce network
Uber is entering India’s growing B2B logistics market by extending its partnership with the Indian government-backed nonprofit that aims to break the domination of the e-commerce duo Amazon and Walmart-backed Flipkart and widen digital commerce in the South Asian nation. On Monday, the ride-hailing giant announced it will soon launch its B2B logistics service through...
VUZ gets $12M for its immersive video experiences across emerging markets and the U.S.
VUZ, a startup known for offering immersive video experiences from red carpets and football stadiums, has raised $12 million as it doubles down on its presence in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as accelerates expansion into Africa, Asia, and the United States. The pre-Series C funding round, led by the International...
Crypto elite increasingly worried about their personal safety
Cryptocurrency executives and other investors with significant wealth from crypto holdings are getting more serious about personal security, according to stories this weekend in both the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. While cryptocurrencies have always created unique security risks, it seems there’s a rising threat of violent abduction due to the growing value of Bitcoin,...
Grok says it’s ‘skeptical’ about Holocaust death toll, then blames ‘programming error’
Grok, the AI-powered chatbot created by xAI and widely deployed across its new corporate sibling X, wasn’t just obsessed with white genocide this week. As first noted in Rolling Stone, Grok also answered a question on Thursday about the number of Jews killed by the Nazis in World War II by saying that “historical records,...
Heybike’s Alpha step-through e-bike is an affordable, all-terrain dreamboat
The Heybike ALPHA is an affordable, all-terrain mid-drive e-bike that rides like a traditional push bike and comes in at $1,699.