This week saw a flurry of news in the tech industry. Amazon launched its Fire TV Channels, allowing users to access ad-supported video content for free. To boost security, Google and Apple are introducing password-less authentication systems leveraging unique cryptographic keys, while Microsoft is also rolling out a new Startup Founders Hub incubator program with investment credits up to $350,000. A bug was found that allowed verified Twitter users to regain their blue check mark and Gmail’s display verification with blue check marks. OpenAI, which operates ChatGPT, managed to scoop up an impressive $300 million, while Apple released its first security patch of the year. Lastly, Elon Musk had to pay $10 million to settle a defamation case.
Persona and Index Ventures, who have been working together, will host a TechCrunch Live event on May 10th to discuss new threats and how the duo managed to spot and back Persona early on. On the other side of the podium, Disrupt San Francisco will be taking place from September 19th until 21st which will include discussions about the tech industry from experts.
Speaking of tech companies, First Republic Bank, Poparazzi, Databricks, Stripe, and Bluesky were all covered this week in the Equity podcast. Found spoke with Stefan Bauer about Marker Learning keeping the cost of learning disabilities assessments low by conducting them from afar. On the other hand, Chain Reaction interviewed Jake Chervinsky from the Blockchain Association to discuss advancing the digital currency realm. The TechCrunch Podcast had Devin chat about Meta’s compliance issues, while the weekly tech news was recapitulated in the Week in Review.
Subscribers to TechCrunch have full access to comprehensive analysis, insights, and surveys. Equity discussed the US ride-hailing giant Lyft’s response to the first-quarter results and the outcome of the current quarter. The concept of down rounds was discussed on Found where Rebecca wrote that they don’t have to signify that someone made a mistake. Chegg reported their first quarter results, with expansion of ChatGPT bringing slow results and doubt in the ability to predict the financial outcome.
Overall, the tech world was a busy one this week, with a myriad of news and developments. The industry continues to march forward and share their insight, bringing the innovation to the world.
