While eyeing a SPAC, Swedish autonomous EV company Einride nears $75 million in new funding

Swedish autonomous electric vehicle startup Einride is aiming to continue the momentum sparked by partnerships with Oatly and Lidl by seeking additional capital, technewss has learned.  Einride is seeking $75 million in new financing, while at the same time exploring the potential for a public li

Makers of ‘kid’s first virtual world’ Animal Jam targets Gen Z teens with Fer.al debut

Before kids graduate to the expansive virtual worlds in games like Roblox, Minecraft and Fortnite, they often get their start in online social gaming with a game like Animal Jam. Here, kids learn to personalize their avatar, explore a world, chat with other players and trade items in a safe environ

A glimpse inside the minds of tech’s DEI leaders

Diversity and inclusion as an idea has been on the agenda of tech companies for years now. But the industry still lacks true inclusion, despite best efforts put forth by heads of diversity, equity and inclusion at these companies. At TC Sessions: Justice, I spoke with Uber Chief Diversity Officer B

Tesla's utility-scale batteries are coming to Texas 

Elon Musk is bringing his utility-scale battery ambitions to the Lone Star state.  An under-the-radar Tesla subsidiary has been at work building a 100 MW energy storage project in Angleton, Texas, according to an application with the Public Utilities Commission of Texas, and other documents. Bloom

Vendr raises huge $60M Series A as its SaaS-purchasing service scales

This morning Vendr announced a $60 million Series A round, a huge funding event led by Tiger Global, with participation from Y Combinator, Sound Ventures, Craft Ventures, F-Prime Capital and Garage Capital. The outsized Series A comes after Vendr last raised $4 million in a mid-2020 seed round, wit

Investors discuss alt-financing and the role of venture capital

There are so many ways to secure capital for your startup beyond traditional venture capital, from crowdfunding to debt financings to revenue-share agreements. But is all money created equal if you are on route to becoming a billion-dollar business? Dr. Astrid Scholz, the co-founder of Zebras Unite

Celebs like Rob Dyrdek, Joe Jonas and Travis Barker are backing the nootropic nosh company, Mindright

It was only a matter of time before someone married the nascent nootropic supplements for brain health to the snack bar craze that continues to attract dollars and exits. That time is apparently now, as Rob Dyrdek, the MTV-famous celebrity, pro-skater and entrepreneur, and Chris Bernard announce a

The path forward for essential workers

Gig workers and warehouse workers have become essential in a pandemic-ravaged economy. In California, a law went into effect earlier this year that makes gig workers independent contractors. Meanwhile, Amazon warehouse workers in Alabama are actively seeking to form a union to ensure better protect

McAfee sells enterprise biz to Symphony Technology Group for $4B

Security firm McAfee announced this morning that it will be selling its enterprise business to a consortium led by the private equity firm Symphony Technology Group for $4 billion. It should pair well with RSA, another enterprise-focused security company the private equity firm purchased last Febru

PayPal to acquire cryptocurrency security startup Curv

PayPal has announced that it plans to acquire Curv, a cryptocurrency startup based in Tel Aviv, Israel. Israeli newspaper Calcalist originally reported the move. And PayPal has now made an official announcement. Curv is a cryptocurrency security company that helps you store your crypto assets secur

The rise of the tech workers union and what comes next

While not entirely non-existent, the union has been an elusive phenomenon in Silicon Valley. More recently, however, big names like Google and Kickstarter have taken key steps toward forming unions, as have smaller startups like Glitch, which made history this week by signing a collective bargainin

Last-mile delivery robotics company Refraction AI raises $4.2M

Ann Arbor-based Refraction AI announced today that it has raised a $4.2 million seed round. The startup, which debuted on the technewss Sessions: Mobility stage back in 2019, was founded by a pair of University of Michigan professors (Matthew Johnson-Roberson — now CTO — and Ram Vasude

Amazon expands its food delivery service across Bangalore

Amazon said on Monday it has expanded its food delivery service, called Amazon Food, across 62 zip codes in Bangalore in what is the first public update since entering the new category in India last May. The American e-commerce group said Amazon Food now reaches key localities in Bangalore such as

New clinical trial data from Locus Biosciences shows promise in CRISPR-Cas3 technology

Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest potential threats to global health today. But Locus Biosciences is hoping that their crPhage technology might provide a new solution. Based in North Carolina's Research Triangle, the startup recently announced promising phase 1b clinical trial results