News
Curated stories on technology, startups, and business.
30 September 2026
Factory CEO just accused his VC board advisor of spying for Cognition
VC Chris Degnan and former board advisor to Factory AI has taken a job as chief revenue officer for Cognition.
30 September 2026
Is Neko Health’s body scan worth it? Spotify billionaire’s startup has come to America
Spotify founder Daniel Ek’s Neko Health raised $700 million to build a business around scanning your body, but it’s not the only company centering its roadmap around a new kind of preventative healthcare. Midjourney is building its own body scanner, while Function Health has also raised significant capital to build out its preventative-health platform. Why are investors betting so big on this category? On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, […]
30 September 2026
Hackers stole millions of US military personnel records during months-long data breach
The Department of Defense notified millions of current and former U.S. military personnel that their personal information had been stolen in a months-long breach.
30 September 2026
DoorDash’s drone strategy started on the ground
DoorDash unveiled the six-propeller aircraft that will be used in its new drone delivery business at its annual Dash Forward 2026 event.
30 September 2026
BMW built the same car for gas and electric. The EV is $4,400 cheaper.
The new BMW 3 Series shows just how quickly EVs have caught up to fossil fuel vehicles on pricing.
30 September 2026
OpenAI’s Jev clone could help the frontier lab stop its swarming agents
OpenAI's "Decisions API" is a Jev clone that confirms the importance of fast, cheap intelligence.
30 September 2026
AI voice startup ElevenLabs doubles valuation to $22B
The $300 million employee tender was co-led by Wellington and T. Rowe Price.
30 September 2026
Reddit is killing RSS feeds and ending public API access because of AI bots
Reddit is ending support for RSS feeds, as the company continues tightening access to its trove of user-generated content.
30 September 2026
The ugly economics of consumer AI
There’s a reason frontier labs have gotten gunshy about consumer AI — and it’s not because the tech isn’t good enough.
30 September 2026
Meta disputes claim that Muse read a user’s private messages without permission
Meta says its Muse AI agent cannot access a user’s Messages without explicit permission, disputing a journalist’s account that the agent read his private messages while the required Mac setting was turned off.
30 September 2026
DoorDash launches an AI agent you can text to order food
By launching an AI agent for food ordering, DoorDash is looking to gain an edge over rivals Uber Eats and Grubhub.
30 September 2026
Destro AI’s secret sauce is getting robots and humans on the same page
"One of the biggest reasons we are winning against robotics companies is because we are not a robotics company."
30 September 2026
Instinct’s new product recommendations are giving some users the ick
Instinct is rolling out human-curated product and travel recommendations, but some users aren’t happy about getting suggestions they never asked for.
30 September 2026
FedEx orders 2,000 electric trucks from Harbinger in $300M deal
The order -- Harbinger's biggest ever -- comes as the startup is reportedly considering an IPO.
30 September 2026
Pledge signed by President Trump and top AI leaders misspells the United States
Pledge signed by President Trump and top AI leaders misspells the United States.
30 September 2026
Google launches Fitbit Air in India, though its high price might deter the masses
Fitbit Air costs around $146 in India, roughly $47 more than its U.S. pricing.
30 September 2026
Instagram rolls out an AI video assistant for creators
This conversational AI assistant is intended to provide personalized feedback to creators, rather than generic advice.
30 September 2026
Instagram rolls out an AI video editor for creators
This conversational AI assistant is intended to provide personalized feedback to creators, rather than generic advice.
30 September 2026
Cerebras Systems’ Andrew Feldman on whether AI can keep scaling at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
At TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, Cerebras Systems CEO and co-founder Andrew Feldman will explore the growing demand for compute, energy, and infrastructure, how Cerebras is approaching those constraints differently, and what comes next if today’s AI hardware reaches its limits.
30 September 2026
Restate lands $20M as the need for durable infrastructure increases with AI agents
Founded by Apache Flink veterans, the startup is taking on workflow heavyweight Temporal.
30 September 2026
3 days left to exhibit: Turn visibility into your next opportunity at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
Three days left to exhibit at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. Book by October 2 at 11:59 p.m. PT to showcase your startup to 10,000+ founders, investors, operators, and tech leaders.
30 September 2026
WhatsApp adds new parental controls for teen accounts
Parents can limit how teens use channels, whose Status they can see, who can see their Status updates, and control who can add teens to groups.
30 September 2026
Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick 4K comes with an actually good remote
Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick 4K is slimmer and faster, but its biggest upgrade may be the thing you’ll actually hold in your hand: a redesigned remote that’s easier to use, especially in the dark.
30 September 2026
Charter Space raises $5M to bring insurance to the stars
As Charter explains on its website, a common experience for space companies is that regular insurers "heard a bunch of scary science words and freaked out."
30 September 2026
Tinder adapts to a social, IRL dating future with ‘Group Hangouts’ feature
As younger users grow increasingly tired of the endless scroll, dating apps are scrambling to adapt to a generation that increasingly wants dating to feel more social and rooted in real-world experiences. The latest example comes from Tinder, which on Wednesday announced the launch of “Group Hangouts,” a new feature that lets groups of friends […]
30 September 2026
Two Google alumni raise $11.3M to back AI startups that enterprises will actually pay for
BAG Ventures announces close of a $11.3M Fund I to invest in all things AI.
30 September 2026
Airbnb adds AI search, more social features
Airbnb is also launching new services such as meal delivery and laundry in select locations
29 September 2026
America.gov gets really weird when you ask it about Minecraft, but it’s not a glitch
For the sake of national security, it's a relief to learn that America.gov is not hallucinating to the point that it's penning lengthy poetry.
29 September 2026
The internet is convinced Elon Musk’s xAI trolled OpenAI’s ‘Dots’ launch
Before OpenAI launched its new AI agent, Dots, on Tuesday, Elon Musk's xAI had already acquired the domain name "dot.com," which now redirects to the Grok chatbot download page.
29 September 2026
Your car and its mobile app are probably handing over all kinds of data to tech companies
Researchers at Northeastern University found vehicles and their companion apps regularly shared detailed data with some of the largest tech companies.
29 September 2026
a16z-backed EliseAI raises $350M, doubles valuation to $4B
EliseAI raises $350M, doubles valuation in a year.
29 September 2026
Tesla secures $30B in new credit lines as it looks to scale Cybercab, Optimus
The company says it won't draw on the new debt facilities this year, as it has already planned at least $25 billion in capital expenditures.
29 September 2026
OpenAI’s latest features take direct aim at the app store model
OpenAI is building out the pieces of an alternative to the traditional app store model, turning ChatGPT into a place where software can be discovered and used by people and AI agents alike.
29 September 2026
OpenAI reportedly in talks to raise $30B round at $1.4T valuation
The new round is anticipated to be the company's last before its delayed 2027 public debut.
29 September 2026
OpenAI repotedly in talks to raise $30B round at $1.4T valuation
The new round is anticipated to be the company's last before its delayed 2027 public debut.
29 September 2026
More Ways to Disrupt: New 2026 Side Events from KOTRA, WayFounder, Enterprise Ireland, SafetyWing + Descope
Disrupt doesn’t end when you leave Moscone West. 👀 Founder dinners, investor meetups, happy hours, workshops, roundtables and more are taking over San Francisco during Disrupt Week. See what’s happening, find your people, and start building your calendar.
29 September 2026
Apple Pay set to launch in India with Axis Bank today, sources say
Some of India's largest banks are holding off on supporting Apple Pay initially.
29 September 2026
Here’s why OpenAI is absent from Nvidia’s industry-wide effort to end rogue AI agents
OpenAI isn't a public supporter of Nvidia's Open Agent Safety Platform, but it is privately working with Nvidia, TechCrunch has learned.
29 September 2026
OpenAI takes on Microsoft with the launch of what feels a whole lot like ChatGPT’s own office suite
OpenAI's newly announced suite of office features puts it into mor direct competition with more traditional software companies.
29 September 2026
Dutch police arrest ShinyHunters hacker accused of planning two murders
Dutch police said the hacker, arrested for being part of the ShinyHunters cybercriminal gang, had plans to organize the murder of two people on his laptop.
29 September 2026
AI-powered app maker Wabi pivots to a messaging experience
Wabi is repositioning its prompt-based app builder as a personal AI agent that can create interfaces on demand, combining chat, apps and ongoing tasks.
29 September 2026
OpenAI launches Dots, its bubbly agentic avatar
Dots are meant to operate independent of any specific hardware or interface, pursuing user-defined goals continuously in the background with minimal oversight.
29 September 2026
OpenAI expands ChatGPT’s plugins with app-like interfaces and automations
OpenAI is expanding ChatGPT plugins with dedicated sidebar homes, interactive panels, file viewers, improved discovery, and support for automations.
29 September 2026
OpenAI gives Codex reusable cloud environments that work across devices
OpenAI is expanding Codex with reusable cloud development environments, a revamped CLI with voice controls, new code review tools and a security-focused product for scanning repositories and preparing fixes.
29 September 2026
OpenAI launches GPT-6.1 Sol, says it nearly matches GPT-6 Astra and costs less
OpenAI says GPT-6.1 Sol delivers significant improvements over GPT-6 Sol across complex professional tasks, including code writing and debugging, document understanding, and executing multi-step business workflows.
29 September 2026
Can a chatbot fix the government maze? The White House is about to find out
America.gov is intended to simplify the process of navigating government bureaucracy, but language models are imperfect and remain prone to hallucinations, which could cause new issues.
29 September 2026
Instinct founder said more than 50% of transactions on the platform are travel-related
Instinct founder said that the platform is growing 10% day-by-day
29 September 2026
After losing his voice to cancer, this founder is building “glasses for voice”
Uhura Bionics, a TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 Battlefield 200, wants to replace flat, robotics voice devices with one that carries emotions.
29 September 2026
Oura shelves its $2.2B IPO citing ‘uncertainty’ in the market
The postponement of the IPO will delay some of the company's plans for its proceeds from the IPO, as well as those of its shareholders.
29 September 2026
With Dazzle, Marissa Mayer bets your camera roll has more info on your life than your inbox
The former Yahoo CEO is introducing a new AI personal assistant based entirely on your photos.
29 September 2026
Meta is expanding its AI agent Muse to small businesses
The tech giant says the agent can help owners run their business and find new customers.
29 September 2026
Still running iOS 26? Update your iPhones, iPads and Macs for this urgent security fix
Apple says the bug was used to attack "specific targeted individuals" running iOS 26, which the majority of Apple customers are still using.
29 September 2026
Fireflies adds dictation to its desktop notetaking apps
Fireflies said that it won't charge extra for the new dictation feature, which can be used with any desktop app.
29 September 2026
OpenAI apologizes to Australia after its AI agents breached government sites
The company also detailed how some of those breaches had happened, and outlined additional measures it is taking to assess the impact of the events.
29 September 2026
Reco raises $55M as AI agent security startups crowd the market
The round builds on a $30 million fundraise in February, taking the company's total funding to $140 million.
29 September 2026
Protego Ventures closes debut $125 million fund for Israeli defense tech
Protego Ventures, the first and largest dedicated defense tech VC in Israel, just completed its final $125 million closing, TechCrunch learned exclusively.
29 September 2026
Ex-Tesla team raises $12.5M to put supply chains on autopilot
Atomic's agentic supply chain software is now being used by companies like DoorDash and HelloFresh.
29 September 2026
Anthropic’s prospectus details losses, growth, and, yes, a warning that its AI could end humanity
In its prospectus, Anthropic just told investors it's losing tens of billions of dollars a year, but also growing like crazy, and — oh yeah — its own AI might pose an existential risk to humanity.
29 September 2026
Peak XV ups Surge seed investment ceiling to $5M, unveils 18-startup cohort
Thirteen of the 18 startups in Peak XV’s latest Surge cohort are targeting global markets, while more than half are based in India.
28 September 2026
OpenAI reportedly ditches model over safety concerns
A top executive at the AI lab told the Wall Street Journal that the model in question had displayed a poor aptitude for following orders.
28 September 2026
Aurora CFO says 30,000 driverless trucks by 2030 isn’t as far-fetched as it sounds
Self-driving truck company Aurora laid out an audacious plan for 2030. Its CFO says its targets aren't aspirational.
28 September 2026
Source: Inference provider Modal Labs closing in on $750M round at $15.75B valuation
The new financing is expected to more than triples the AI infrastructure startup's valuation from just four months ago.
28 September 2026
AMD will acquire Fei-Fei Li’s World Labs for $8.2 billion
The acquisition will see World Labs founder Fei-Fei Li join AMD as executive vice president and chief scientist.
28 September 2026
Shopify opens checkout to browser-based AI agents
Shopify is expanding WebMCP support to checkout, allowing browser-based AI agents to update order details and complete purchases with a buyer’s authorization.
28 September 2026
Tesla delays Roadster 2 event again due to bad weather
Tesla says the event "can only be held outdoors," as it's expected to show the car flying in some form using SpaceX thrusters.
28 September 2026
The AI boom took over Climate Week and not everyone is happy about it
Just like the rest of the U.S, data centers and AI are dividing climate tech founders and investors.
28 September 2026
Nvidia launches new platform for reining in rogue AI agents
As the debate rages over whether the recent spate of rogue AI agents is a step toward AGI or a more conventional engineering problem, Nvidia is offering its own answer to problem. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on Monday introduced a toolkit of software and hardware products that add independent security layers around AI agents to […]
28 September 2026
Anthropic releases Sonnet 5.5, which it calls a significantly cheaper, faster work partner
Anthropic has released the newest version of its mid-range model, boasting faster response times and less token burn.
28 September 2026
Google is killing off Gemini’s Gems in favor of ‘skills’
As all-in-one AI agents like Meta's Muse and Instinct take off, Google is opting to end a feature which built task-specific agents.
28 September 2026
OpenAI still doesn’t seem to have a handle on all of its rogue AI activity
On Friday, OpenAI published a new site devoted to “misalignment reports” and the breath of the incidents s alarming.
28 September 2026
Meta launches enterprise AI platform, hires MongoDB CEO to lead new initiative
Meta says it will focus on bringing its full technology stack, including Muse, Meta Business Agent, Muse API, Muse Code, and more to businesses and developers.
28 September 2026
The iPhone Duo may already have its first killer app: a virtual Walkman
An indie developer's upcoming app for the iPhone Duo is going viral for turning the new foldable into a virtual Walkman.
28 September 2026
Anthropic, Gamma, and Clay share what happens when enterprises actually deploy AI at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
Anthropic, Clay, and Gamma on what it takes for an AI product to go beyond the demo at the AI Stage at TechCrunchDisrupt 2026. Register to join and get 50% off a second pass.
28 September 2026
Physical AI chip developer SiMa.ai hits $1.45B valuation
The edge computing startup raised a $150 million Series C led by Fidelity and Amplify.
28 September 2026
Mavi bets on the AI boom creating demand for a new kind of accountant
Accounting staffing company Mavi emerges from stealth with $4million in funding.
28 September 2026
After a deepfake voice fooled her grandfather, this founder sprang into action
After her grandfather was scammed by a deepfake of his brother's voice, Tarini Padmanabhuni founded DetectifAI, a San Francisco startup building AI models small enough to run directly on smartphones and flag fake voices in real time, and it's now one of the companies competing in Startup Battlefield at TechCrunch Disrupt.
28 September 2026
Commonwealth Fusion Systems’ Brandon Sorbom and Helion’s David Kirtley on bringing fusion to the grid at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
CFS' Brandon Sorbom and Helion's David Kirtley join the Smart Systems Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 to discuss the breakthroughs moving fusion forward, the challenges that remain, and what it will take to deliver fusion power to the grid at scale. Get your pass at regular price and get a second one at 50% off.
28 September 2026
FBI reportedly declares ‘cyber security incident’ after hackers steal agents’ personal data
The bureau has not yet publicly confirmed a breach, but has told its agents that their personal information and Social Security numbers were exposed.
28 September 2026
Next five VCs judging Startup Battlefield 200 contenders at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
Thousands of applications. Multiple rounds of review. Hundreds of hours spent evaluating startups from around the world. Now comes the part everyone has been waiting for. Startup Battlefield 200 is almost here, and with today’s announcement, the judging panel is nearly complete. In just a couple of weeks, 200 carefully selected startups will gather at […]
28 September 2026
Modulate raises $25M for its voice models and analysis suite
Modulate deploys its models to detect deepfake, fraud and scam
28 September 2026
Your final chance to grab your exhibit table at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is Oct. 2
The last day to book your Disrupt 2026 exhibit table is this Friday, October 2 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Secure your exhibit table and get your startup in front of 10,000+ founders, investors and tech leaders at San Francisco's Moscone West on Oct 13-15.
28 September 2026
Insuretech Outmarket raises $34.5M just months after prior round
The startup uses AI to automate tedious paperwork for insurance agencies and brokers.
28 September 2026
ElevenLabs’ new v4 speech model supports more expression control and 90 languages
ElevenLabs v4 can clone voices with a 10 second clip
28 September 2026
Viral AI agent Instinct raises $1B Series C at a $10B valuation
Instinct has raised a $1 billion Series C, saying 'we're just getting started.' The company is now valued at $10 billion.
28 September 2026
SpaceX’s Starship rocket reaches orbit for the first time
Though not without some drama along the way.
28 September 2026
Maritime intelligenc startup Quartermaster raises another $140M
The tech enables real-time awareness for what Quartermaster calls the “largest blind spot on Earth.”
28 September 2026
Ocean surveillance startup Quartermaster raises another $140M
The tech enables real-time awareness for what Quartermaster calls the “largest blind spot on Earth.”
28 September 2026
Truecaller takes its scam intelligence to the open web as it looks beyond caller ID
Truecaller finds a new way to reach users as pressure grows on its traditional caller ID business in India, its biggest market.
27 September 2026
Anthropic’s CEO is about to have dinner with President Trump
This will be the first one-on-one meeting between Dario Amodei and Donald Trump
27 September 2026
Can Muse overcome Meta’s trust issues?
On Equity, we discussed how Meta's AI announcement managed to steal the spotlight from OpenAI and Anthropic.
27 September 2026
Anthropic’s Dario Amodei gets the SNL treatment
"AI is the devil and I its maker."
27 September 2026
TechCrunch Mobility: AV companies pick their lanes
Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility, your hub for the future of transportation and now, more than ever, the role AI is playing in it.
27 September 2026
Sennheiser Momentum 5 review: Great sound, incredible battery life, and few compromises
I spent the last few weeks with the Sennheiser Momentum 5 to determine if this pair actually stands out, testing everything from sound quality and noise cancellation to comfort and battery life.
27 September 2026
PNOE’s new face mask wants to make lab-grade breath testing a self-serve affair
PNOĒ, the Malden, Mass.-based startup whose breath-analyzing mask used to bear an unfortunate resemblance to Bane's, is launching a sleeker self-serve version on October 1 that lets gym-goers measure their VO₂ max and other metabolic markers in eight minutes without a trained operator.
27 September 2026
Google tests buying from Walmart-owned Flipkart through Gemini and AI Mode in India
The limited test covers select products and users, with a broader rollout planned for later in October.
26 September 2026
Insurers claim AI is already increasing healthcare costs
Blue Cross Blue Shield says hospital use of AI tools led to an additional $942M in healthcare spending over a two-year period.
26 September 2026
TikTok agrees to pay at least $100M in Alabama settlement
TikTok will pay Alabama at least $100 million in a settlement tied to allegations that the short-form video platform misled users about safety and was designed to addict children.
26 September 2026
Meta says it will run ads for ‘Musk’ documentary after all
At least one social media company seems to be reversing its stance on whether it will accept advertising for Alex Gibney’s upcoming documentary about Elon Musk.
26 September 2026
Levoit’s new air purifier is for the pet odors that have taken over your apartment
This $189.99 air purifier is specifically designed to tackle pet odors, removing up to 70% in one hour.
26 September 2026
I created an interactive digital avatar of myself — and you can talk to it
After obtaining an interactive avatar and training it to discuss venture fraud, I have mixed feelings about making AI clones of ourselves.
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