Technology

A Conversation with Danielle Cohen-Shohet, Founder and CEO of GlossGenius As a freelance makeup artist while studying at Princeton, Danielle Cohen-Shohet witnessed firsthand the challenges small business owners in the beauty and wellness industry face. She decided to teach herself how to code and launched GlossGenius in 2016 as a solution to these problems. A Platform Born Out of Necessity GlossGenius is a tech platform designed to help spa, studio, and salon owners manage their operations more efficiently. The company has seen significant growth since its inception, with over 40,000 customers across the beauty and wellness space today. These businesses collectively generate about $2 billion in annualized transaction volume on the platform. A Goal to be a 'Business-in-a-Box' for Beauty Pro...

As the new year approaches, many of us are reminded of all the things we accomplished this year — getting a promotion, being more productive or even showing up to places on time — as well as things we failed to do. (There may or may not be a barely used foldable WalkingPad collecting dust in my closet.) The month of January is as great of an excuse as any to start off the year right and overall improve your well-being. According to a New Poll: Most Common Resolutions for 2024 A recent poll conducted by YouGov found that the most common resolutions for 2024 are: Save more money: Many people want to be more financially stable in the new year. Improve physical health: With the rise of sedentary lifestyles, it's no wonder many people want to prioritize their physical well-being. Be a happier ...

Warning Signs Twitter's Tor service, a version of the site that could be accessed even in countries where the social network is banned, has gone dark after the company failed to renew its certificate. The certificate for Twitter's onion site expired on March 6, just days before the site was set to mark its one-year anniversary. Certificate Expiration Pavel Zoneff, director of strategic communications at the Tor Project, the nonprofit organization behind the anonymous global network, told TechCrunch that the site 'is no longer available seemingly with no plans to renew.' Twitter's Tor site now shows visitors a warning that its certificate has expired and proceeding past that point, which is not recommended, displays a Twitter error page. Consequences of Certificate Expiration The consequenc...

The Birth of a New Solution Several years ago, Jonathan Dambrot, a partner at KPMG, was helping customers deploy and develop AI systems when he started to notice certain gaps in compliance and security. According to him, no one could explain whether their AI was secure — or even who was responsible for ensuring that. The Problem with AI Security and Compliance Fundamentally, data scientists don't understand the cybersecurity risks of AI and cyber professionals don't understand data science the way they understand other topics in technology,' Dambrot told TechCrunch in an email interview. 'More awareness of these risks and legislation will be required to ensure these risks are addressed appropriately and that organizations are making decisions on safe and secure AI systems.' The Birth of Cr...

The generative AI bubble did not burst in 2024, with investments reaching new heights last year. According to data from financial tracker PitchBook compiled for TechCrunch, generative AI companies worldwide raised $56 billion from VCs in 2024 across 885 deals. A Record-Breaking Year This raw cash total is a new record for the segment, with an increase of 192% from 2023. In 2023, investors poured $29.1 billion into generative AI startups across 691 deals. "We aren't seeing a slowdown in generative AI funding," said Ali Javaheri, an emerging technology analyst at PitchBook. "Big names like OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI continue to secure major raises and release new, competitive products." Q4 Soars to New Heights Deal value in Q4 2024 soared to $31.1 billion with the closure...

Alibaba's Cloud Move Alibaba Cloud has appointed Daniel Zhang, the company's CEO, as acting president. This move comes after Ritareports that Alibaba Cloud has a new president. As the third-largest public cloud infrastructure provider in the world, this development is significant for the tech industry. Implications of the Appointment Daniel Zhang's appointment as acting president is expected to bring about changes in the company's leadership and strategy. With his experience as CEO, he is likely to drive growth and innovation in the cloud computing space. This move could also have implications for Alibaba Cloud's competition with other major players like AWS and Microsoft. Spotify Rings in 2023 Spotify wants to help you welcome 2023 in style with its curated playlists. Aishawrites that t...

NASA and Lockheed Martin Unveil the X-59: A 'Quiet Supersonic' Aircraft for the Future The wait is finally over. NASA and Lockheed Martin have officially unveiled the X-59, a revolutionary aircraft designed to break the sound barrier without generating the notorious sonic boom that comes with it. The aircraft has been years in the making, with a $248 million grant from NASA in 2018 sparking its development at Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works facility. A New Era in Aviation The X-59 is not just an experimental aircraft; it's a game-changer for the future of air travel. With its sleek and aerodynamic design, the plane aims to reduce the sonic boom to a mere "sonic thump," minimizing disruptions to people, infrastructure, and wildlife. This technology has the potential to revolutionize...

After five years of honing his skills as a technology investor at Susquehanna Growth Equity, Shalin Mehta is now embarking on a new chapter as the sole general partner at his own growth equity firm, SEVA. With $85 million in capital commitments secured for his debut fund, Mehta is poised to make a significant impact in the investment world. A Background of Excellence Mehta's journey began at Susquehanna Growth Equity, where he spent five years sharpening his technology investor skills. During this period, he led investments in notable companies such as NoRedInk and MuckRack. His expertise and dedication to his craft have earned him a reputation as a talented and ambitious investment professional. The Birth of SEVA With a passion for customer-centric founders and companies, Mehta decided to...

Tel Aviv-based Senser has emerged from stealth mode and announced a $9.5 million seed round led by Eclipse, with participation from Amdocs and other private investors. The company describes itself as an AIOps platform that uses machine learning to help developers and ops teams quickly identify the root causes of outages and service degradations. The Power of eBPF At its core, Senser utilizes the increasingly popular eBPF (extended Berkeley Packet Filter) technology to monitor a company's infrastructure. eBPF is unique in that it runs inside the Linux kernel, allowing for seamless monitoring of networking and application traffic without significant overhead. This is not surprising, given the growing adoption of eBPF among observability companies. Contextualizing Data Senser CEO and co-found...

It's been a little over 180 days since Worldcoin publicly launched, and its futuristic-looking Orb device is getting an upgrade. Alex Blania, CEO and co-founder of Tools for Humanity, shared exclusively with TechCrunch that the next generation of the Orb will be quite different from its predecessor. A New Era for Worldcoin's Orb Device The new Orb is expected to roll out in the first half of this year, featuring alternative colors and form factors. The design change aims to make the device "much more friendly" and "way [more] tuned down," according to Blania. In fact, he compared it to an Apple product, highlighting its sleek and modern appearance. A Brief History of Worldcoin's Orb Device Tools for Humanity, the company behind Worldcoin, has been working on the Orb dev...