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OpenAI removes access to sycophancy-prone GPT-4o model
The model is known for its overly sycophantic nature and its role in several lawsuits involving users' unhealthy relationships to the chatbot.
The SEC closed its investigation into Fisker
The financial regulator revealed in a response to a TechCrunch records request that the probe was closed in September 2025.
India partners with Alibaba.com for export push despite past China tech bans
India turns to Alibaba.com's B2B network of 50 million buyers in 200 countries to help businesses scale global exports.
Anthropics Super Bowl ads mocking AI with ads helped push Claudes app into the top 10
After Anthropic's Super Bowl ads, Claude's app reached the top 10 on the U.S. App Store.
Roku to launch streaming bundles as part of its efforts to continue growing its profitability
Roku delivered an impressive Q4, posting net income of $80.5 million. The company also outlined plans for streaming bundles.
Our matches convert to actual dates at about 10x the rate of Tinder, Weng told TechCrunch.
Dutch phone giant Odido says millions of customers affected by data breach
The Dutch phone giant Odido is the latest phone and internet company to be hacked in recent months, as governments and financially motivated hackers continue to steal highly confidential information about phone customers.
Amazons Ring cancels partnership with Flock, a network of AI cameras used by ICE, feds, and police
This news comes less than a week after Ring's Super Bowl commercial stoked controversy over the company's capacity for mass surveillance.
Coheres $240M year sets stage for IPO
Cohere surpassed $240 million in annual recurring revenue in 2025, highlighting strong enterprise AI demand as the Canadian startup positions itself for a potential IPO amid intensifying competition from OpenAI and Anthropic.
Meta plans to add facial recognition to its smart glasses, report claims
The feature, internally known as Name Tag, would allow smart glasses wearers to identify people and get information about them via Meta's AI assistant.
Score, the dating app for people with good credit, is back
Two years ago, a controversial dating app was launched and quickly shuttered: for people with good-to-excellent credit. Now, the founder is relaunching it, open to anyone.
Fusion startup Helion hits blistering temps as it races toward 2028 deadline
Helion's Polaris device hit 150 million degrees C recently, a milestone that nudges the company toward its commercial power plant that will sell electricity to Microsoft.
Waymo is asking DoorDash drivers to shut the doors of its self-driving cars
If a passenger accidentally leaves a Waymo door open, the vehicle can get stuck in place.
For $1M, you can pay Bryan Johnson (or BryanAI?) to teach you how to live longer
The longevity-obsessed investor Bryan Johnson is charging $1 million to sign up for his Immortals program.
IBMwill hire your entry-level talent in the age of AI
IBM plans to triple its entry-level hiring in the U.S. in 2026 but these jobs will have different tasks than in previous years.
Rivian was saved by software in 2025
The company's annual revenue was boosted by its technology joint venture with Volkswagen Group.
Didero lands $30M to put manufacturing procurement on agentic autopilot
Didero functions as an agentic AI layer that sits on top of a companys existing ERP, acting as a coordinator that reads incoming communications and automatically executes the necessary updates and tasks.
Anthropic raises another $30B in Series G, with a new value of $380B
The infusion of funding for the AI startup takes place as it is vying for customers and cultural attention with its competitor, OpenAI.
YouTube finally launches a dedicated app for Apple Vision Pro
When Apple Vision Pro first came out two years ago, YouTube hesitated to release a dedicated app. Today is the day they officially launch one.
Hacker linked to Epstein removed from Black Hat cyber conference website
Emails published by the Justice Department revealed cybersecurity veteran Vincenzo Iozzo emailed, and arranged to meet, Jeffrey Epstein multiple times between 2014 and 2018.
Trump administration undermines EPA enforcement of Clean Air Act
The EPA's new rule seeks to undo a 2009 finding that allowed the federal government to regulate six greenhouse gases.
Automattic planned to target 10 competitors with royalty fees, WP Engine claims in new filing
WP Engine claims Automattic was going to target more hosting companies with royalty fees.
A new version of OpenAIs Codex is powered by a new dedicated chip
OpenAI calls the new coding tool the first milestone in its relationship with the chipmaker.
Auroras driverless trucks can now travel farther distances faster than human drivers
CEO Chris Urmson called it a superhuman moment, adding that Auroras trucks can now carry freight 1,000 miles in 15 hours faster than what a human driver can legally accomplish.
More US investors sue South Korean government over handling of Coupang data breach
Coupangs massive data breach has sparked U.S. investor lawsuits against the South Korean government over alleged discrimination
Apple acquires all rights to Severance, will produce future seasons in-house
The show is expected to run for four seasons, with the possibility of spin-offs, a prequel, and foreign versions.
US FTC airs concerns over allegations that Apple News suppresses right-wing content
In a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook, FTC chair Andrew Ferguson cited reports from Media Research Center, a right-leaning think tank, which accused Apple of excluding right-leaning outlets from the top 20 articles in the Apple News feed.
Eclipse backs all-EV marketplace Ever in $31M funding round
The San Francisco-based startup says its AI-first approach has allowed it to scale faster.
Apples Siri revamp reportedly delayed again
Apple has been promising a new-and-improved, cutting-edge, AI-powered Siri since it first unveiled Apple Intelligence in 2024.
Uber Eats launches AI assistant to help with grocery cart creation
Uber Eats launched a new AI feature, Cart Assistant, that can automatically add items to your cart based on text or image prompts.
Microsoft says hackers are exploiting critical zero-day bugs to target Windows and Office users
Critical security flaws targeting Windows and Office users allow hackers to take complete control of a victim's computer by clicking a malicious link or opening a file. Patch now.
How to get into a16zs super-competitive Speedrun startup accelerator program
TechCrunch spoke to a16z partner Joshua Lu for some tips on standing out for the Speedrun program.
Cash App adds payment links so you can get paid in a DM
The new feature allows users to share payment requests in a variety of digital settings.
Amazons new eero Signal keeps you connected to the internet when outages occur
A new device from eero will keep you online even if your ISP goes down.
The search is on: 2026 Joseph C. Belden Innovation Award nominations are open
Nominations for the 2026 Joseph C. Belden Innovation Award are open, inviting SMBs with groundbreaking innovation a chance to win scaling opportunities. Last day to apply is February 13.
Activist investor Ancora publicly opposes the WBD-Netflix deal
An investment group is trying to sway Netflix shareholders to reject the WBD deal in favor of Paramount.
The former boss of the L3Harris-owned hacking and surveillance tools maker Trenchant faces nine years in prison for selling several exploits to a Russian broker, which counts the Russian government among its customers.
Why the economics of orbital AI are so brutal
A 1 Gw orbital data center would cost roughly $42.4Balmost three times its ground-bound equivalent.
Google releases the first beta of Android 17, adopts a continuous developer release plan
Google is changing how developers get access to new APIs and features of the latest version.
How AI changes the math for startups, according to a Microsoft VP
Amanda Silver is a corporate vice president at Microsofts CoreAI division, where she works on tools for deploying apps and agentic systems within enterprises.
UpScrolleds social network is struggling to moderate hate speech after fast growth
UpScrolled, a social network that surged in the wake of the U.S. TikTok deal, has seen an uptick in harmful content, including usernames and hashtags that contain racial slurs.
Senior engineers, including co-founders, exit xAI amid controversy
At least nine engineers, including two cofounders, have announced their exits from xAI in the past week, fueling online speculation and raising questions about stability at Musks AI company amid mounting controversy.
Twilio co-founders fusion power startup raises $450M from Bessemer and Alphabets GV
Inertia Enterprises will use the Series A investment to build one of the world's most powerful lasers, a key part of its power plant design.
Upside Robotics is reducing fertilizer use and waste in corn crops
Upside Robotics builds autonomous solar-powered robots that can help farmers reduce their fertilizer use by 70%.
Former Founders Fund VC Sam Blond launches AI sales startup to upend Salesforce
The startup, Monaco, has come out of stealth as an AI-native all-in-one CRM plus more system backed by names like the Collison brothers and Garry Tan.
Amazon Pharmacy to expand same-day delivery to nearly 4,500 US cities
The expansion will cover customers in newly served states such as Idaho and Massachusetts.
TikTok launches an opt-in Local Feed in the U.S. leveraging users precise location
TikTok's new Local Feed will show you nearby shopping, dining, events, news, and more.
Integrate raises $17M to move defense project management into the 21st century
The round was led by FPV Ventures co-founder and managing partner Wesley Chan.
Meridian raises $17 million to remake the agentic spreadsheet
A new company called Meridian.AI has emerged from stealth with an IDE-based approach to agentic financial modeling.
Humanoid robot startup Apptronik has now raised $935M at a $5B+ valuation
Apptronik has sold another $520 million in a Series A extension to existing and new investors like Google and Mercedes-Benz.
Complyance raises $20M to help companies manage risk and compliance
Complyance raised a $20 million Series A led by GV for its AI-native compliance platform.
The New India Assurance Company is revamping its strategy to tap into the underinsured MSME sector by addressing accessibility rather than cost. CMD Girija Subramanian reveals plans for simplified products, parametric insurance in allied sectors, and a focus on speedy claims to drive growth.
Samsung to hold its Galaxy S26 event on February 25
Samsung is going to launch S26 lineup just before Mobile World Congress (MWC).
With co-founders leaving and an IPO looming, Elon Musk turns talk to the moon
According to The New York Times, which reports that it heard the meeting, Musk told employees that xAI needs a lunar manufacturing facility, a factory on the moon that will build AI satellites and fling them into space via a giant catapult.
Amazon may launch a marketplace where media sites can sell their content to AI companies
A new report claims the e-commerce giant is looking to create a pipeline of licensable content between media publishers and AI companies.
An ice dance duo skated to AI music at the Olympics
Czech ice dancers Katerina Mrazkova and Daniel Mrazek are learning the hard way that LLMs sometimes spit out straight-up plagiarism.
Boston Dynamics CEORobert Playterstepsdown after 30 years at the company
Robert Playter announcd he is leaving Boston Dynamics after 30 years at the company in various roles, including six years as CEO.
VC Masha Bucher, Epstein associate and Day One founder, explains herself
After numerous news reports documented Masha Bucher's close business and personal relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Bucher took to X to explain.
Google sent personal and financial information of student journalist to ICE
The tech giant handed over the personal information of a journalist and student who attended a pro-Palestinian protest in 2024. This is the latest example of ICE using its controversial subpoena powers to target people critical of the Trump administration.
Nearly half of xAIs founding team has now left the company
Out of the twelve-person founding team, only seven are still at the company (counting Elon).
Heres how Rivian changed the rear door manual release on the R2
Rivian, along with other automakers, has been under pressure to make the manual door releases easier to access. The new R2 SUV does that here's how.
Facebook adds new AI features, animated profile photos, and backgrounds for text posts
Facebook's new AI features let users animate their profile pics, restyle their Stories and Memories, and add backgrounds to text posts.
Singapore says China-backed hackers targeted its four largest phone companies
The Singaporean government said the China-backed hackers gained limited access to critical systems run by the country's top four telecommunication giants, but said they did not disrupt services or steal customers' data.
Vega raises $120M Series B to rethink how enterprises detect cyber threats
Vega Security raised $120 million, bringing its valuation to $700 million, in a round led by Accel. The company aims to rethink how enterprises detect cybersecurity threats.
What to know about Netflixs landmark acquisition of Warner Bros.
Learn more about Netflix's acquisition of Warner Bros., considered the most historic megadeal in Hollywood, as it continues to develop.
Google expands tools to let users remove sensitive data about themselves from Search
Users will be able to more easily request the removal of results that include private information or non-consensual explicit imagery.
Trump EPA reportedly seeks to revoke landmark air pollution rule
EPA administrator Lee Zeldin is reportedly expected to repeal the 2009 endangerment finding that underpins U.S. climate regulatory efforts.
YouTubers arent relying on ad revenue anymore heres how some are diversifying
YouTubers are no longer just creators, and in some cases, their side businesses are growing faster than their channels.
Hauler Hero collects $16M for its AI waste management software
Hauler Hero has seen its customer base, revenue, and head count double since the company raised its seed round in 2024.
India orders social media platforms to take down deepfakes faster
Indias new rules take effect February 20, tightening deepfake oversight and shrinking takedown windows to as little as two hours.
Spotify hits a record 751M monthly users thanks to Wrapped, new free features
Spotify credited a successful Wrapped campaign and new features in its free tier for its rapid user growth
AI video startup Runway raises $315M at $5.3B valuation, eyes more capable world models
Startup Runway has raised a $315 million round at a $5.3 billion valuation, funds it will use to expand beyond AI video generation and into world models.
Proptech startup Smart Bricks raises $5 million pre-seed led by a16z
Smart Bricks is an AI-powered proptech that helps investors find high-quality real estate investments
Primary Ventures raises healthy $625M Fund V to focus on seed investing
Primary Ventures has closed a $625 million fund focused on seed investing nationwide. It's a sizeable accomplishment for a seed-stage VC firm.
YouTube rolls out an AI playlist generator for Premium users
YouTube Music is rolling out a new AI-powered playlist-generation feature that allows Premium users on iOS and Android to use text prompts to create playlists.
The first signs of burnout are coming from the people who embrace AI the most
Because employees could do more, work began bleeding into lunch breaks and late evenings. The employees' to-do lists expanded to fill every hour that AI freed up, and then kept going.
