General startup news that spans funding, products, and the broader entrepreneurial landscape.
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Spotify billionaire’s body scan startup has come to America
SKIP This excerpt provides insufficient concrete information for a substantive news brief. The source material lacks essential details about Neko Hea…
Federal judge calls Flock ‘indiscriminate mass surveillance’
A federal judge ruled that a sheriff's deputy violated a woman's Fourth Amendment rights by using Flock, an automated license plate reader system, to …
Lyft is paying $272.5M to settle lawsuit over how it classified drivers
Lyft will pay $272.5 million to settle a lawsuit challenging its classification of drivers as independent contractors rather than employees, according…
The Pentagon taps Elon Musk and Palmer Luckey to help decide what the military should do next
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has tasked Elon Musk and Palmer Luckey with steering a 120-day Pentagon study on the future of warfare, alongside forme…
Factory CEO just accused his VC board adviser of spying for Cognition
Factory AI CEO David Guralnik accused Chris Degnan, a venture capitalist and former board adviser, of corporate espionage after Degnan joined competit…
The internet is convinced Elon Musk’s xAI trolled OpenAI’s ‘Dots’ launch
Elon Musk's xAI made a strategic domain play that caught the attention of the tech world just before OpenAI unveiled its new AI agent product, Dots. X…
Meta and YouTube say they will run ads for ‘Musk’ documentary after all
Meta and YouTube reversed course on advertising restrictions for director Alex Gibney's upcoming Elon Musk documentary, both platforms announcing they…
2 days left to save up to $200 on a TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass — reason 4 of 5 to attend
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is pushing its early-bird pricing window toward a close, with just two days remaining for attendees to lock in discounts of up…
Crusoe abandons $1.25B plan to use Boom turbines at AI data centers
Crusoe Energy has scrapped its plans to deploy Boom Supersonic's turbines at its AI data centers, marking a significant setback for both companies' pa…
Unsecured OpenAI agents posted 53 user images on the internet without the lab’s knowledge
OpenAI disclosed a security breach involving its AI agents that exposed 53 user images to the internet without authorization or knowledge from the com…
Kiteworks urges customers to shut down their servers amid ‘imminent’ threat of cyberattack
Kiteworks, a file transfer and secure data exchange platform, instructed customers to immediately shut down their servers after receiving word from la…
For months, OpenAI’s agent swarms have been attacking online databases to find obscure facts
# OpenAI's Autonomous Agents Have Been Conducting Months-Long Database Attacks, Researchers Warn Researchers have uncovered that OpenAI's autonomous …
Bring your co-founder, partner, or colleague and get 50% off a second TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is running a group discount that cuts the cost of a second attendee ticket in half, provided both passes are the same tier. Th…
Even Americans who use AI every day are worried about it
# Americans Using AI Daily Remain Skeptical Despite Familiarity A new report reveals a paradox in American attitudes toward artificial intelligence: …
4 days to save up to $200: Reason 2 of 5 to be at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is running a limited-time discount window that closes September 25 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Attendees who register before the deadlin…
Stolen passwords are exposing America’s water providers to hackers
# Stolen Passwords Expose America's Water Utilities to Cyberattacks America's water utilities face a growing cybersecurity threat from stolen passwor…
Five AI safety sessions every founder should have on their TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 agenda
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is dedicating substantial programming to AI safety, with five dedicated sessions designed for founders building in the space. …
Discover what’s next: 5 days left to save up to $200 on your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 ticket
TechCrunch is pushing final registration for Disrupt 2026, its flagship annual conference, with a five-day deadline to lock in early-bird pricing befo…
Is the AI industry really ready to slow down?
# AI Industry Faces Reality Check on Growth Ambitions The artificial intelligence sector confronts a fundamental tension between explosive market exp…
New California law will penalize influencers who don’t disclose political ads
California has enacted new legislation that creates enforceable penalties for social media influencers who fail to disclose paid political advertising…
6 days left to get ahead at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
TechCrunch has announced a limited-time pricing window for its flagship Disrupt 2026 conference, with current ticket rates expiring in six days on Sep…
Automattic names interim CFO after exec departures
Automattic has named Jeremy Klaperman as interim CFO following recent executive departures at the company. Klaperman previously served as CFO of WordP…
Trump says it’s time to rebrand AI with a new name — and he’s also creating an AI Force
Donald Trump wants to strip artificial intelligence of its name. The president-elect proposed rebranding the entire sector under a new moniker, claimi…
General context
General startup news that spans funding, products, and the broader entrepreneurial landscape.