Spotify is giving users more ways to personalize what they hear. The company is launching a new feature that allows users to filter their library by specific activities, moods, or genres. These filters can also be used to find playlists, or, to some extent, audio books and podcasts, and can …
Read More »Adtech company PubMatic sues Google over monopoly violations
Advertising exchange PubMatic has filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing the tech giant of illegally monopolizing the ad technology market. PubMatic is seeking billions of dollars in damages, according a report from Bloomberg. The lawsuit marks the second time that an advertising exchange has sued Google since a federal judge …
Read More »Get behind the scenes at Disrupt 2025 by volunteering
Want to launch a startup? Build a brand? Run a large-scale conference like this one day? Volunteering at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 is one of the best ways to see how the magic happens — and learn what it takes to pull off a world-class event. Image Credits:Slava Blazer Photography TechCrunch …
Read More »SpaceX strikes $17B deal to buy EchoStar’s spectrum for Starlink’s direct-to-phone service
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has agreed to acquire 50MHz of wireless spectrum and Mobile Satellite Service spectrum licenses from EchoStar, for use in the Starlink satellite network. EchoStar will sell its AWS-4 and H-block spectrum licenses in exchange for $8.5 billion in cash and $8.5 billion SpaceX stock. SpaceX said the …
Read More »Amazon Music’s new AI feature generates personalized playlists every Monday
Ever since Spotify launched an AI DJ, Amazon Music has been developing its own AI-powered features, including AI-generated playlists and AI-assisted search, to compete more effectively with the music giant. Now, Amazon Music is launching a new feature called “Weekly Vibe,” designed to further personalize the listening experience. The feature …
Read More »More than 10 European startups became unicorns this year
Funding season is about to restart in Europe after the summer lull, and if all goes well, it will be counting new unicorns in dozens — plural. While mega-rounds are less common than they were in 2021, this hasn’t prevented 12 European startups from raising rounds at valuations of more …
Read More »InDrive has big plans to become a global ‘super app’ where others have failed
InDrive, known for its bidding-based ride-hailing model across Asia and Latin America, is rolling out a “super-app” strategy aimed at frontier markets — expanding beyond cabs to deliver daily essentials to its users. Beginning with grocery deliveries in Kazakhstan, InDrive plans to expand into multiple verticals over the next 12 …
Read More »Uber and Momenta to test autonomous vehicles in Germany in 2026
Ride-hailing giant Uber and Chinese autonomous vehicle startup Momenta plan to start testing robotaxis in Munich, Germany starting in 2026 – the first continental European city either company has announced publicly – with plans to expand to other markets. The partnership was first unveiled in May 2025, when Uber said …
Read More »Are bad incentives to blame for AI hallucinations?
A new research paper from OpenAI asks why large language models like GPT-5 and chatbots like ChatGPT still hallucinate, and whether anything can be done to reduce those hallucinations. In a blog post summarizing the paper, OpenAI defines hallucinations as “plausible but false statements generated by language models,” and it …
Read More »Koah raises $5M to bring ads into AI apps
How can startups and developers actually monetize their AI products? A startup called Koah, which recently raised $5 million in seed funding, is betting that ads will be a big part of the answer. If you spend any time online, there’s a good chance you’ve seen plenty of ugly, AI-generated …
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