Adam Back Wants CBDCs Dead

If you asked a cypherpunk in the 1990s about their worst-case scenario for the future of money, they probably would have described something very close to Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). The fight against financial surveillance was fundamental for Bitcoin’s early instigators, and CBDCs go against everything they stand for: privacy, decentralization and individual sovereignty. … Read more

Suger helps companies list and scale up on cloud marketplaces

When cloud providers like Microsoft Azure and AWS launched cloud software marketplaces a decade ago, it opened up a new sales channel for software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies to get in front of potential enterprise customers. These marketplaces effectively enabled SaaS companies to bypass the traditional, lengthy sales cycles. But rarely is the seller-side experience a walk … Read more

SGNL snags $30M for a new take on ID security based on zero-standing privileges

Security experts often describe identity as the “new perimeter” in the world of security: in the world of cloud services where network assets and apps can range far and wide, the biggest vulnerabilities are often leaked and spoofed log-in credentials.  A startup called SGNL has built a new approach that it believes is better at … Read more

Adobe’s Sora rivaling AI video generator is now available for everyone

Adobe’s text- and image-to-video AI generator has been released for anyone to try online. Generate Video is available starting today in public beta following a limited early access testing period last year. The beta tool can be accessed via the re-designed Firefly web app, alongside new image generation and translation capabilities, and AI credit subscription … Read more

AI-driven manufacturing database Keychain raises $5M for European push

Brands are constantly trying to streamline how they source packaging materials and ingredient suppliers for their products in order to quickly meet consumer demand. However, even today this process can involve some laborious wandering around trade shows. Keychain is an AI-powered platform that aims to quickly connect the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry with manufacturing … Read more

Disappointing U.S. CPI Data Sends Bitcoin Tumbling Below $95K

U.S. inflation unexpectedly marched higher in January, sending crypto and traditional markets sharply lower. The closely-watched Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.5% in January versus an expected 0.3% and December’s 0.4% pace. On a year-over-year basis, CPI was higher by 3.0% against forecasts for 2.9% and 2.9% in December. The so-called core CPI, which excludes … Read more