Once in a while I come across a company that seems like a complete no-brainer. An idea that induces a ‘why hasn’t this been done already’ moment. That was certainly the case when I jumped on a call with Aja Guldhammer Henderson, CEO of Reshopper, a Danish startup that has built a mobile app for parents to buy and sell used items. Read More
from TechCrunch
Conversational AI is pushing deeper into enterprise with Workfit, a new startup promising to make conference call follow-ups and mid-meeting CRM updates as easy as playing a song or checking the weather on Google Home or Amazon Echo. Battery Ventures, Greycroft Partners, Salesforce Ventures and a number of angels joined together to finance a $5.5 million seed investment in the… Read More
from TechCrunch
Low-Earth orbit is a prime candidate for explosive commercial growth, but it’s also a space where the risk of actual explosions resulting from debris impact is a legitimate concern for businesses focused on the opportunity. That’s the problem LeoLabs aims to address, a startup spun out of SRI International to detect, map and help avoid collisions with debris and objects floating… Read More
from TechCrunch
Foxconn is taking over SoftBank’s Asia-based tech investment fund. The manufacturing giant, which is responsible for producing Apple’s iPhone among many other tech products, has agreed to buy a majority 54.5 percent stake in SoftBank Asia Capital in exchange for $600 million, according to a filing. The deal is scheduled to go through March 1, after which time SoftBank Asia… Read More
from TechCrunch
Ahead of Snap’s eagerly-awaited IPO, Line, one of the U.S. tech IPO highlights of 2016, has doubled down on sister service and Snapchat clone Snow. Line and Snow both share the same parent company — Naver — but the two firms have increasingly become financially entwined. Line bought up 25 percent of Snow last September for $45 million, and now it is nearly doubling its… Read More
from TechCrunch
SoftBank is being linked with an investment that could value WeWork at more than $20 billion. CNBC reported that the Japanese telco giant is gearing up to make an initial investment of $2 billion into WeWork, with a view to putting nearly $1 billion more into the firm. The publication said the secondary investment could reach $2 billion, which would put SoftBank’s total input at $4… Read More
from TechCrunch
Boston-based Drizly used to be known as the on-demand delivery app for alcohol. More recently, the company evolved into a marketplace that helps brick-and-mortar liquor stores to connect with and sell to customers nearby through web and mobile commerce. The Drizly app shows shoppers different prices on the beer, wine and liquor that they’re looking for at local shops, along with… Read More
from TechCrunch
Entrepreneurs who pitch on ABC’s Shark Tank typically make packaged goods and apparel. Occasionally, the high tech breaks through. XCraft, the company behind the PhoneDrone Ethos, scored a rare investment from all of the judges on the ABC show last spring, for example. And tonight, drones are once again flying “in the Tank” as DARTdrones seeks funding to build… Read More
from TechCrunch
Online finance startup SoFi got its start refinancing student loans but gradually has been adding other services to members. To expand into new regions and move closer to becoming a full-service financial services company, SoFi has confirmed that it raised an additional $500 million in equity financing led by Silver Lake. Read More
from TechCrunch
So much for sticking “nuclear weapons” in carriers’ dumb pipes. Shine, last year’s enfant terrible of mobile ad blocking is pivoting (again!) — in both tone of voice and business model. It’s also rebranding to, er, Rainbow. Read More
from TechCrunch