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Well, folks, it looks like a new twist in the Techstars drama has arrived. CEO Mael Gavet is stepping down and co-founder David Cohen is coming back to save the day. At least, he tries to. Gavet's three-and-a-half-year tenure was riddled with controversy, from mass employee turnover to the closure of its accelerator program faster than you could say “pivot.” Despite the fact that an $80 million deal with JP Morgan turned into a Titanic-level disaster that resulted in a $7 million loss in 2023, she is adamant that she wouldn't trade the experience for anything. And Cohen? He's excited to be back as CEO.
This week's most interesting startup stories
Linktree has topped 50 million users, proving that everyone has a link in their profile now. From a modest 2.7 million in 2019 to this astronomical figure, Linktree is the school favorite that basically everyone wants to sit with. Linktree is rolling out social commerce features, allowing creators to set up storefronts on their pages and earn commissions from big brands like Adidas and Sephora. With over $300 million in sales already generated through these links every month, it's clear they're not cutting corners.
- Humane Searching for a Home: Humane, the brainchild of a former Apple exec and developer of the unsolicited $700 Ai Pin, is reportedly now looking for a buyer. Apparently, it's hoping to raise between $750 million and $1 billion in case someone wants to add a wearable gadget that's basically a smartphone but has commitment issues to its product portfolio.
- Sonos wraps your headSonos has finally answered your prayers and released its “most requested product ever.” It's not a speaker that you pay the tax on, it's the Ace headphones. For just $449, you'll soon be showing off these beautiful over-ear headphones.
- Coming soon to a rotary near youThe UK has officially given its approval for “driverless cars”, as they're called in the UK. Quaint as that sounds. The Self-Driving Cars Act means we could be sharing the roads with robotic cars by 2026.
This week's trend: AI drama
OpenAI's latest chatbot, Sky, seems to have been caught trying to imitate Scarlett Johansson. The AI's voice sounded a little too close to the actress' iconic voice. Though OpenAI is adamant that it wasn't trying to replicate her sultry voice in “her,” the internet couldn't help but notice the eerie similarity. CEO Sam Altman even tweeted “her.” Well, really, why wouldn't you? Now that they've lawyered up faster than Johansson could say “deepfake,” OpenAI has removed Sky's voice from their product, and legal maneuvering is swirling to find a solution to this mess.
Meanwhile, OpenAI doesn't seem to be in such a predicament. ChatGPT's mobile app just saw a revenue surge with the release of GPT-4o. Despite promising free access on the web, OpenAI decided to push a $19.99 monthly subscription to mobile users who want to join the effort. Surprisingly, people are paying more than they pay for a Netflix subscription. In the first week alone, net revenue soared 22%, earning up to $900,000 per day, and reaching a whopping $4.2 million in cumulative revenue from May 13 to 17.
- Scar Jo, me, my brotherHollywood's elite can now hide their digital doppelgangers in CAA's high-tech “theCAAvault,” a sort of Fort Knox for AI clones.
- The whitest sausage festival in townDespite years of complaining about the marginalization of women and people of color in the AI field, Meta seems to have decided that diversity is overrated, so it's assembled a team of business bros to guide its AI strategy.
- Let's go, JackExpedia's latest news reads like a soap opera script. CTO Rathi Murthy and SVP Sreenivas Rachamadugu were summarily fired for violating mysterious company policies. The travel booking giant is keeping mum on the juicy details, citing confidentiality. Murthy had been touting new AI features just days before his sudden departure. Bad timing, I'd say.
Most interesting fundraising this week
Bonjour! In the latest episode of “How much money can you put into AI?”, French startup H gets $220 million in seed funding. Yes, that's right. Seed fundingWith a founding team boasting more ex-Google DeepMind employees than any Silicon Valley alumni club, H aims to revolutionize productivity with its “Frontier Action Model.” In other words, they're building robots that do jobs better than humans can. Remember why I'm sitting here typing this newsletter with my actual fingers? Is this the 1920s?
- The hardware isn't that hard: Forget what you know about hardware engineering, because here comes Rollup. The startup has been lurking in the shadows for three years, quietly raising $5.6 million from big firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Thiel Capital.
- Many LayersQuickBooks may be the father of accounting software, but it looks like a newcomer has arrived: Layer. Fresh off a $2.3 million funding round, the startup promises to make accounting a breeze for small businesses with some seriously impressive built-in features.
- We don't need dirty roads: Forget robotaxis stuck in city traffic. The latest craze is self-driving cars that ignore road maps. Overland AI and Potential, backed by venture capital and the US Department of Defense, are leading this off-road autonomous revolution.
More TechCrunch articles you shouldn't miss…
Welcome to the job market of 2023. Instead of flipping burgers, you might be able to program a robot to do it for you. Brian has compiled a list of 81 robotics companies that are hiring faster than you can say the words “artificial intelligence”. From humanoids that might take your job (or make your coffee) to drones that will get your Amazon package delivered to you before you even click “order”, there's never been a more thrilling (or terrifying) time to dive into robotics. So apply now and secure your place in the brave new world of our machine overlords 🤖.
- More money means more passengers?: Fasten your seat belts, Minnesotans! Uber and Lyft drivers are getting a raise thanks to the state's new deal, but don't take a back seat and get too comfortable: Drivers will start making more starting in 2025. Uber has been unhappy about rising costs.
- Sorry, kid, you don't have a bank.Teenage fintech startup Copper Banking is having a tough week. Its banking and debit products were discontinued following the massive collapse of Synapse. The middleware provider filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, then Chapter 7 bankruptcy and emerged from bankruptcy.
- Would you like to be my friend?: Now friend-zoned due to a general decline in its main market, dating app Bumble has decided to swipe right on community-building platform Geneva. Apparently realizing that “chilling with Netflix” doesn't necessarily translate to a lifelong partnership, Bumble is looking to broaden its focus from one-on-one connections to group hugs and friendship bracelets.
- The horror of VinFastIn a tragic twist that seems ripped from a car horror movie script, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating a crash in California in April in which a family of four was burned to death after their VinFast VF 8 SUV played “oak hugging” games.
- Don't worry, we already have all your detailsWelcome to the digital age, where even checking into a hotel may become the center of a spyware drama! At least three Wyndham hotels in the US have been caught using pcTattletale, a consumer spyware app that secretly takes screenshots of guest details and customer information.
