India approves Reliance’s $3.4 billion deal with Future Group, brings new headache to Amazon

The Indian watchdog Competition Commission (CCI) of India said on Friday it has approved the $3.4 billion deal between the nation's two largest retail giants, Future Group and Reliance Retail, posing a new headache for American e-commerce group Amazon, which had raised objections over the deal.

Charge’s City is an e-bike for everyone

Charge Bikes founder Nick Larsen and VP of product Peter Vallance wanted to reduce the pain points of buying and owning an electric bike to attract everyday folks and cycling enthusiasts alike. The company offers three models: the Comfort for weekend leisure rides, the City for com

How four European cities are embracing micromobility to drive out cars

The coronavirus pandemic is acting as a catalyst for urban transformation across Europe as city authorities grapple with how to manage urban mobility without risking citizens' health or inviting gridlock by letting cars flood in. Micromobility and local commerce are being seen as both short and

How China’s Realme sold 50 million phones in just over 2 years

Starting a new phone brand in 2018 might seem too late in an already crowded market, but Sky Li was convinced that consumers between 18-25 years old were largely underserved — they needed something that was both affordable and cool. A few months after Li founded Realme in May that year, the s

Astanor Ventures launches $325M Impact Fund aimed at food tech and ag tech startups

We can all, by now, ascribe to the idea that something has changed in the last few months. Like it or not, business is not as it was. If we were true to ourselves, we would admit that our lives will never be the same again. But parallel to this visceral feeling is the quite clear and objective trut

Rocket Lab makes its first booster recovery after successful launch

New Zealand-born launch provider Rocket Lab took a step toward making its launch vehicles reusable today with the safe splashdown and recovery of an Electron booster after it successfully took its payload to orbit. The image above is the view from the booster up into the parachute that brought it s

With new cash and a former Apple exec now at the helm, Connect Homes is ready to reconstruct homebuilding

Greg Leung had worked at Apple for years and was coming off a stint at the smart lock company Otto when he got the call to interview with Connect Homes. The pitch — building a starter home for a much lower cost than other prefabricated houses on the market, and one that could be dropped in to

Steve Case’s Revolution is targeting $500 million for its fourth growth fund

Revolution, the Washington, D.C.-based investment firm founded by AOL co-founder CEO Steve Case and former AOL senior exec Ted Leonsis, is raising $500 million for its fourth fund, shows a new SEC filing. Asked about the effort earlier today, the firm — one of whose executives leaves for the

After Apple's M1 launch, Intel announces its own white-label laptop

Its long fruitful relationship with Apple may be sunsetting soon, but Intel's still got a fairly massive footprint in the PC market. There's never a good time to get complacent, though (a lesson the company learned the hard way on the mobile front). This week the chip giant is debuting its

Ashton Kutcher’s Sound Ventures targets $150M for third fund

Sound Ventures, a fund co-founded by Ashton Kutcher and Guy Oseary, has filed paperwork indicating plans to raise a third fund at $150 million. Notably, the firm filed paperwork for the same total in 2018 for its second fund. The firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its plan

Robotaxi companies get the green light to charge for rides in California

Companies that launch robotaxi services in California will be able to charge for and offer shared driverless rides as long as they can navigate a new government approval process that some in the industry argues adds unnecessary bureaucracy that could delay deployments by more than two years. The Ca

FireEye acquires Respond Software for $186M, announces $400M investment

The security sector is ever frothy and acquisitive. Just last week Palo Alto Networks grabbed Expanse for $800 million. Today it was FireEye’s turn, snagging Respond Software, a company that helps customers investigate and understand security incidents, while reducing the need for highly trai

Roblox files to go public

Roblox, the child-friendly gaming company, filed to go public today. Its listing comes one day after the lending company Affirm initiated its own public offering and a mere two days after Airbnb's filing. Roblox filed confidentially to go public in mid-October, but its numbers

Daily Crunch: Verizon sells HuffPost to BuzzFeed

HuffPost has a new owner, Facebook says its misinformation-fighting AI is getting smarter and Affirm files to go public. This is your Daily Crunch for November 19, 2020. The big story: Verizon sells HuffPost to BuzzFeed technewss’s parent company Verizon Media has sold HuffPo