TechCrunch

HBO’s “The Last of Us” is the latest TV series adapted from a video game that aims to bring more gamers to the streaming service. Today, the first full trailer of “The Last of Us” was released, giving fans of the best-selling franchise a look at the new show, set to premiere on HBO and … Read more

Code-generating systems like DeepMind’s AlphaCode, Amazon’s CodeWhisperer and OpenAI’s Codex, which powers GitHub’s Copilot service, provide a tantalizing look at what’s possible with AI today within the realm of computer programming. But so far, only a handful of such AI systems have been made freely available to the public and open sourced — reflecting the … Read more

Services that help folks make, share and profit from creative works — Maven to Bounty to Substack to Patreon to Canva — have proliferated and grown in recent years. The rise of creator-focused startups was not an accident; instead, a secular trend of more accessible software for more diverse areas of creative work was met … Read more

Making its television premiere tonight, “Ring Nation” is debuting amid calls from advocacy groups to cancel the show. MGM (now owned by Amazon) is leveraging footage from Ring security cameras (also owned by Amazon) to create a show along the lines of “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” with Wanda Sykes as host. The show is a … Read more

With a month of hindsight, we’re getting a better picture of what the Inflation Reduction Act will mean for the American economy and the climate tech sector itself. The new law caught many by surprise, both in the climate tech space and elsewhere. Few had thought sweeping climate legislation was possible. The final bill is … Read more

Move aside, Pepsi. The National Football League (NFL) and Apple announced that Apple Music is the official sponsor of the Super Bowl Halftime Show as part of a multi-year deal. Pepsi had been the sponsor since 2013. Apple Music’s new sponsorship with the NFL will last for multiple years. The Super Bowl LVII, on Sunday, … Read more

TechCrunch Disrupt has played host to the biggest names in tech and has launched the Silicon Valley stars who have driven society into the future. They’re the titans, the ones who continue to reshape our relationships with technology and with one another: Zuckerberg. Benioff. Musk. Kalanick. Mayer. Dorsey. The list of startup stars who have … Read more

When Adobe announced it was buying Figma for $20 billion earlier this month, the news was a bombshell. But what stunned a lot of people wasn’t just the truckload of money — it was that a company whose whole raison d’être seemed to be going after Adobe was suddenly going to be part of Adobe. Was … Read more

Faraday Future said it has secured up to $100 million in funding as the struggling EV startup tries to launch its long-delayed first model, the FF 91. The near-term funding agreements include up to $40 million in convertible notes and warrant exercise payments, and up to $60 million in convertible notes from Hong Kong holding … Read more

Elbit Systems of America, the U.S. arm of Israeli defense contractor Elbit, says its network was compromised in early June and personal information of employees was stolen. In a breach notification filed with the Maine attorney general’s office, Elbit Systems of America said 369 employees were affected by the data breach, which included employee names, … Read more

Tech Nation is trailing in second place in the race to remain the UK’s government-backed ‘startup champion’ after the latter put the £12 million contract out to tender, according to TechCrunch’s sources. First in line at this point in time – in a decision which is due in December – is banking giant Barclays. Tech … Read more

Volkswagen is partnering with a Belgian technology group to produce battery materials in Europe, the latest in a spate of industry-wide deals to create a circular battery economy that can meet that can meet production targets as automakers shift toward EVs. The $3 billion joint venture between Volkswagen Group’s battery business PowerCo and Brussels-based Umicore … Read more

In the final days of the third quarter, it’s becoming clear that some areas of startup investment are losing luster. Declines are hardly surprising amid a more conservative venture capital market, a falling stock market, and global macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty. And still, even with large caveats, the pace of change in certain startup sectors … Read more

Police in London have confirmed a 17-year-old teenager, who is suspected of involvement in high-profile breaches at ride hailing giant Uber and Rockstar Games, has been charged with multiple counts of computer misuse and breaches of bail. The suspect, whose name was not released due to U.K. reporting restrictions on identifying non-adults, was arrested in … Read more

Netflix’s push into the mobile gaming market continues with today’s announcement the streamer is establishing an internal games studio based in Helsinki, Finland, led by the co-founder and General Manager of the Zygna Helsinki game development studio, Marko Lastikka. The studio will be the fourth for Netflix, joining others including Next Games, Night School Studio, … Read more

Is game streaming the next big chapter for Netflix? So far, the streamer has remained mum on the topic, despite recent job listings calling for cloud gaming skill sets. Netflix told TechCrunch it’s always looking for talent and exploring new product ideas, adding, “We have nothing else to share at this time.” The company launched … Read more

Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines. Don’t forget that the code “EQUITY” can save you money on Disrupt tickets and TechCrunch+ access. And it makes us here on the show look good! Markets: Stocks are mostly down around the world today, taking especially … Read more

TikTok is facing a £27 million ($29 million) fine after the U.K.’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) provisionally found that the company breached child data protection laws for a two year period. The alleged breach happened from May 2018 through July 2020, with the ICO noting that the company “may have” processed data of children under … Read more

Amazon is holding a Prime Day-like shopping event this fall, marking the first time that the online retail giant will host two sales events exclusively for Prime members in the same year. The “Prime Early Access Sale” will take place on October 11 and 12. The exclusive deals for members will be available in 15 … Read more

French startup Not So Dark has raised an $80 million Series B funding round led by Kharis Capital and Verlinvest, with Convivialité Ventures also participating. The startup has launched digital food delivery brands that you can find in food delivery apps. While Not So Dark started with a network of dark kitchens, the company has … Read more

Are smartphones ever entirely secure? It depends on one’s definition of “secure,” particularly when dealing with corporate environments. Most companies with bring-your-own-device policies install apps or agents on workers’ smartphones to help secure them, leveraging the management capabilities built into operating systems like Android and iOS. But those might not be sufficient. That’s what Cloudflare … Read more

Funding sources for tech startups in Ukraine have gone off a cliff this year, with investors (and their LPs) wary of taking on the risk of backing potentially promising ideas and people who have stayed in the country amid the sustained, persistent and increasingly ugly onslaught from Russia. But just as there are glimmers that … Read more