Welcome to TechCrunch AM! This morning, we’ve got insights into Tesla’s robotaxi launch, the return of Digg, and Google’s new AR glasses. We’ve also got Luminar layoffs, Fortnite’s return, the xAI-to-government revolving door, LLMs in freight logistics, notes on Jeff Bezos’s yacht, fresh funds for fintech, more Microsoft Build drama, and more. Let’s go!
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Image Credits: Artur Widak/NurPhoto / Getty Images
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1. Full self-driving? Tesla’s much-anticipated launch of a robotaxi service in Austin next month is already looking a little lackluster. CEO Elon Musk said the service will be limited to areas in the city deemed “the safest” and that the cars won’t “take intersections.” Read More
2. The shakeup: Digg, a former news aggregation competitor to Reddit, was revived a couple of months ago by Kevin Rose and Alexis Ohanian. Now, they’ve added Christian Selig, the iOS dev who ran the third-party Reddit client Apollo, to the team as an advisor. Read More
3. Glass 2.0: A decade after the Google Glass project shut down, Google has unveiled its latest effort to develop Android XR smart glasses, powered by DeepMind’s Project Astra. On stage at Google I/O, Sergey Brin admitted he “made a lot of mistakes with Google Glass.” Read More and More
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Lidar layoffs: Luminar may have said goodbye to its CEO and founder, but it’s not out of the woods yet. The company is going through another round of restructuring this year, following extensive cuts in 2024. Read More
Through the revolving door: Amanda Scales, the former xAI HR exec who helped lead Elon Musk’s DOGE while at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, has returned to xAI. Perhaps it’s loyalty to Musk and his interests of the moment, since the billionaire is also stepping down from his position leading DOGE. Read More
Return of the mines: Fortnite has finally returned to the U.S. App Store after a five-year hiatus due to a lengthy legal battle with Apple. And as an added finger to Apple, the new version of Fortnite on the App Store offers a 20% cashback for buying in-game items directly from Epic. Read More
Logistics LLM: Uber Freight has formally launched its suite of AI features to shippers around the world as part of its existing supply chain software. That includes a logistics-focused LLM called Insights AI, which Uber quietly launched in 2023, plus more than 30 AI agents. Read More
Crypto woes: Coinbase says its data breach has impacted at least 69,461 customers whose personal and financial information was stolen. Coinbase refused to pay the $20 million in ransom to delete the data. Read More
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Hypocratic Oath: Fashion blog Discoursted's entertaining write-up explores the irony of Lauren Sánchez arriving in Cannes to receive a climate justice award on her fiancé Jeff Bezos’s $500 million megayacht. The Koru burns hundreds of gallons of diesel per hour, is possibly made with illicit teak, and is the perfect example of the “‘philanthro-capitalist” delusion.” Read More
Whoops: Microsoft’s head of security for AI, Neta Haiby, accidentally revealed confidential messages about Walmart’s use of the company’s AI tools, per The Verge. This was during a Build talk that was already drama-filled after pro-Palestinian protesters caused a stir. Read More
Money moves: Singaporean fintech Airwallex raised $150 million in fresh funds, money that it will invest in AI development to support growth. The raise brings the firm’s valuation to $6.2 billion, per Bloomberg, and comes alongside another $150 million secondary sale. Read More
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Brick and algorithm store: Shopify is giving merchants new AI-powered tools to help them enhance the online shopping experience for their customers. Things like an AI store builder to set up a storefront with a single prompt and an AI generator to create elements like banners. Read More
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