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we have always drowning In this week's AI news. His I/O at Google set the pace: In the keynote, the word “AI” came up an average of once every minute throughout the two-hour keynote. Yausers! Here's the DL about Google's AI plans:
OpenAI has dropped GPT-4o, an AI model that powers ChatGPT. This new “omni” wonderchild can handle text, audio, and video like a multitasking genius sprung to his shot of espresso. His boyfriend Ilya Sutskever, co-founder and principal scientist at OpenAI, also decided to jump on board. The man who fundamentally helped build the brains of future AI champions is now chasing a rainbow that is “personally meaningful.”
Meanwhile, OpenAI is currently considering AI-generated pornography. Yes, that's right. It looks like our future involves robots with an artistic flair for NSFW content. The company wants to produce explicit images and text “responsibly” without violating any laws or rights. Secretly, I don't think letting Skynet dabble in adult entertainment is the most responsible thing to do, but stay tuned for updates on this rollercoaster ride. Because it seems like we're hurtling toward an X-rated tech dystopia faster than you can say “Algorotica.”
Oh, and it's also worth noting that Anthropic lets kids join its AI parties, but only if the developer follows the company's rules. Teens can access third-party apps that use Anthropic's AI. However, rather than Anthropic's own apps, these apps must include safety features such as age verification and content filtering, and have “COPPA Compliant” signs posted on all sides of the walls.
What happened outside AI land? Of course, let's take a look…
This week's most interesting startup stories
Are you ready to entrust your love life to a robot? Bumble's Whitney Wolfe Herd says the time has come for bots to date other bots in the name of fostering “healthy and fair relationships.” thinking. Imagine this. An AI “dating concierge” critiques your insecurities and sends your own bot for a test run against another bot. If sparks fly, there might be a match! It's basically the Tinder meets “Black Mirror” episode “Hang the DJ” minus the dystopian charm. While some scoff, others wonder if living vicariously through a digital avatar is worse than swiping right on someone because they have a cute dog in their profile picture. A true modern romance.
- Ringling, who is that?Your bones squeak: Are you ready to feel ancient? Oura's new smart ring feature promises to tell you how old your heart really is with cardiovascular age indicators. It's like a magic mirror, but for arteries.
- From cradle to cradle: Tired parents and environmental warriors, gather together! Alola Baby is here to save you from the endless parade of baby products stuffed into landfills. This startup decided that your little angel's leftover crib shouldn't have a one-way ticket to Trashville. Instead, they are ushering in “refurbished” products that are as good as new (or so they claim).
- Thank you very much: Kyle Vogt, who along with Cruise gave us self-driving cars that can sometimes forget pedestrians, is back with a new venture in which robots do household chores. Vogt's latest brainchild, Bot Company, has already earned him $150 million in funding. Let's hope these bots have better spatial awareness than his last project.
This week's most interesting fundraisers
Have you ever lost a bet and ended up starting a company? Nicholas Johnson did, and now he's here to save apartment-dwelling EV owners from the slow death of 120-volt outlets. is. Enter Orange Charger, who's hawking his $750 smart outlet that will enrich your ride without homeowners having to break a sweat over installation costs.The company has raised $6.5 million in an oversubscribed seed round.
In a plot twist reminiscent of a Silicon Valley soap opera, Permira is taking Squarespace private in a $6.9 billion cash deal. A website builder that you probably used to start a now-abandoned blog is now being used by some very serious people with very deep pockets. After a roller coaster ride of public trading that saw stock yo-yos look like they were auditioning for Cirque du Soleil, Squarespace is once again away from the prying eyes of the market.
- layer? I don't understand much.: QuickBooks, meet its new nemesis, Layer. The San Francisco-based startup has cashed in on his $2.3 million bid to unseat accounting giants by building bookkeeping tools directly into platforms like Square and Toast.
- spicy dishes: In a world where Sysco and US Foods reign supreme, Pepper is the brave underdog shaking up the B2B food e-commerce scene. With his new $30 million cash infusion led by ICONIQ Growth, Pepper is giving small distributors some serious technical muscle to fight back against the big players.
- Could you be my neighbor?: Welcome to the world of PayHOA, where the charm of Kentucky meets the brilliance of SaaS. The startup, which he once founded, raised $27.5 million in Series A funding. These days, it seems like even his local HOA needs some cloud-based financial wizardry.
Other must-see TechCrunch articles…
In the latest episode of “Elon Musk Can Do Whatever He Wants,” the social media platform formerly known as Twitter is now flagging the words “cis” and “cisgender” as slurs. Yes, it is.meanwhile actual If you skate unscathed to hate speech targeting marginalized groups, you'll receive a full-screen warning if you use terminology approved by medical and government authorities. It's as if Elon is trying to make X a hostile environment for those who don't align with his new extremist fan base.The majority of people on the platform teeth Cisgender — If you use this word (or just enjoy basic human decency), consider this your cue to step off stage left.
Oh, I guess Musk is doing whatever he wants… What do you think happens when you put Elon Musk and a profitable division in the same room? Of course you fire! Tesla's Supercharger network – an EV owner's dream with more than 50,000 charging ports around the world – is now in complete disarray after Musk fired his entire team.
- Will you go my way?: Uber's latest brainpower to solve concert traffic nightmares and shuttle buses. Inspired by its success in India and Egypt, Uber will launch shuttle service in U.S. cities this summer for concerts, sporting events, and airport travel. Because everyone loves being stuffed like sardines with strangers.
- crushing disappointment: Everyone, please stay strong. Because Apple's latest attempt to market the new iPad Pro is a masterclass in how to alienate its creative fanbase. They thought it would be really cool to show the iPad destroying traditional art supplies into oblivion in their “Crush” ad. Spoiler: It wasn't.
- Are you here tonight?: Have you ever wondered how to manage a large group of frontline employees without losing your sanity? Sona invests $27.5 million to help keep social is the superhero workforce management platform that has revolutionized shift schedules and timesheets for everyone who keeps their operations running.
- Geeker and you will find: Zeekr, a Chinese luxury EV brand owned by Geely, has made a grand entrance to the New York Stock Exchange, becoming the first major listing from China in the United States since 2021. Investors went wild, and Zeekr's stock price soared 38% in minutes, valuing it at a whopping $7 billion.
- A lightweight solution to a heavy problem: In a world where everyone seems to be on fad diets or taking miracle weight loss pills, Sammy Fakery decided to do something that actually helps. The idea is to launch a startup that helps registered dietitians open their own practices and get covered by insurance.
