TechCrunch Startup News

Latest Episodes:

Move fast, make things – UK fintech’s response to the coronavirus crisis continues Apr 08, 2020

Show notes

The U.K.’s fintech’s response to the coronavirus pandemic so far might best be described as “move fast, [and] make things,” as multiple and sometimes impromptu teams roll out financial technology solutions to help combat the crisis.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Utah’s Podium raises $125M Series C led by YC after reaching $100M ARR Apr 08, 2020

Show notes

This morning, Utah-based SaaS startup Podium announced that it has closed a $125 million Series C led by Y Combinator’s Continuity fund, with participation from Sapphire Ventures. Prior investors Alkeon, IVP, GV, Summit, Accel and Recruit Co. also took part in the funding event. The new capital values Podium at around $1.5 billion, and brings […]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Blossom Capital’s ‘Cultivate’ is an angel program seeking to back European unicorn alumnus Apr 07, 2020

Show notes

Just a few months after closing a new $185 million fund to continue backing early-stage European startups, Blossom Capital, the VC firm founded by Ophelia Brown, is announcing a new angel investment program seeking to back European unicorn alumnus. Dubbed “Cultivate,” the new program looks to create a 30-strong angel network made up of founders […]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

BounceX cuts staff, reduces salaries in wake of COVID-19 economic disruptions Apr 07, 2020

Show notes

TechCrunch confirmed today that BounceX (the firm is rebranding this year) has executed layoffs and salary cuts in the wake of recent COVID-19-led economic disruptions. Many startups are undergoing staff cuts as the domestic and global economies slow, making individual reductions less newsworthy as the layoff tally rises. However, as BounceX is a company we’ve […]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Cultivating adaptability is a pandemic coping skill Apr 06, 2020

Show notes

It’s clear that the people who can let go of their past plans and embrace the new environment ahead will thrive.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bustle Digital Group shuts down The Outline as part of broader layoffs Apr 06, 2020

Show notes

Bustle Digital Group, owner of a portfolio of digital media properties including Bustle itself, says it laid off two dozen staffers today. That includes eliminating the entire staff ofÂ The Outline, a culture site that it acquired a year ago. In a statement, a BDG spokesperson said the company will continue to host The Outline’s archives, […]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

IRL pivots into virtual event calendar In Remote Life Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Activity-monitoring startup Zensors repurposes its tech to help coronavirus response Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

Computer vision techniques used for commercial purposes are turning out to be valuable tools for monitoring people's behavior during the present pandemic. Zensors, a startup that uses machine learning to track things like restaurant occupancy, lines, and so on, is making its platform available for free to airports and other places desperate to take systematic measures against infection.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hio wants to put networking events back on your remote-only calendars Apr 02, 2020

Show notes

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines and the COVID-19 pandemic has surged event cancellations across the country. Tech workforces have found ways to stay productive: back-to-back Zoom calls, work-from-home happy hours and more Twitter threads than anyone asked for. But Jason Craparo, the founder of events platform Hio, wants to put organic, face-to-face networking […]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Take your shot: Apply to TC Top Picks at Disrupt SF 2020 Apr 02, 2020

Show notes

TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco is known around the world as the place where the early-stage startup community gathers to learn and launch, connect and collaborate. We know COVID-19 has created challenges, but Disrupt SF is still on schedule (keep tabs on our updates here). Like startup founders everywhere, we quickly learn where, when and how […]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices