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Captiv8 report highlights data for spotting fake followers Dec 27, 2018

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Captiv8, a company offering tools for brands to manage influencer marketing campaigns, has released its 2018 Fraud Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report. The goal is to give marketers the data they need to spot fake followers — and thus, to separate the influencers with a real following from those who only offer the illusion of engagement. The report argues that that this a problem with a real financial impact (it’s something that Instagram is working to crack down on), with $2.

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A new solar technology could be the next big boost for renewable energy Dec 27, 2018

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A new solar technology could be the next big boost for renewable energy Across the globe, a clutch of companies from Oxford, England to Redwood City, Calif. are working to commercialize a new solar technology that could further boost the adoption of renewable energy generation. Earlier this year, Oxford PV, a startup working in tandem with Oxford University,received $3 million from the U.K. government to develop the technology, which uses a new kind of material to make solar cells.

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My product launch wishlist for Instagram, Twitter, Uber and more Dec 26, 2018

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‘Twas the night before Xmas, and all through the house, not a feature was stirring from the designer’s mouse . . . Not Twitter! Not Uber, Not Apple or Pinterest! On Facebook! On Snapchat! On Lyft or on Insta! . . . From the sidelines I ask you to flex your code’s might. Happy Xmas to all if you make these apps right. Instagram See More Like This – A button on feed posts that when tapped inserts a burst of similar posts before the timeline continues.

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HQ Trivia launches HQ Words tonight under reinstalled CEO Dec 25, 2018

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HQ’s expansion beyond trivia emerges from beta tonight, but the question is whether it’s different and accessible enough to revive the startup’s growth. HQ Words opens to everyone with today’s 6:30pm pacific broadcast within the HQ Trivia app after several weeks of closed beta testing of the Wheel Of Fortune-style game.

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How Juul made vaping viral to become worth a dirty $38 billion Dec 24, 2018

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A Juul is not a cigarette. It’s much easier than that. Through devilishly slick product design I’ll discuss here, the startup has massively lowered the barrier to getting hooked on nicotine. Juul has dismantled every deterrent to taking a puff. The result is both a new $38 billion valuation thanks to a $12.8 billion investment from Marlboro Cigarettes-maker Altria this week, and an explosion in popularity of vaping amongst teenagers and the rest of the population.

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Boosted nabs $60M as the electric skateboard maker looks to build something new Dec 24, 2018

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Boosted nabs $60M as the electric skateboard maker looks to build something new Boosted has scored some serious cash as it looks to move beyond the world of electric skateboards to conquer new forms of personal transportation. The startup announced today that it has closed a $60 million round of Series B funding co-led by Khosla Ventures andiNovia Capital.Stanford’s StartX and Bay Meadows also participated in the round. Boosted has now raised north of $70 million.

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Teeth aligner startup Candid opens up physical locations in SF Dec 21, 2018

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Candid, a teeth aligner startup that aims to make straight teeth more accessible and more affordable than Invisalign, is evolving its direct-to-consumer business. In addition to its at-home impression process, Candid recently started enabling people to come into a physical office to get their teeth scans completed. Today, Candid is opening physical storefronts in San Francisco, Austin, Columbus, Ohio and Santa Monica, Calif.

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Earnin raises $125M to help workers track and cash out wages in real time Dec 21, 2018

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BeforeRam Palaniappan founded Earnin, he developed a system for employees at a payments company called UniRush, where he spent eight years as president. If you needed money before payday, he would write you a check from his checking account and when payday rolled around, employees would reimburse him.

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Square Roots is bringing more transparency to its produce Dec 20, 2018

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If you’re concerned about what you eat, there’s a good chance you’ve looked at the food in the supermarket, or in your fridge, and wondered where it actually comes from. Now urban farming incubator Square Roots is introducing a new way for you to check full history of the produce that you’re about to purchase. To do so, you just scan the QR code or type in the lot number that the company says will be included in the packaging of all its produce moving forward.

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Coinbase’s Earn.com becomes a crypto webinar with crypto rewards Dec 20, 2018

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Coinbase acquired Earn.com for at least $120 million back in April. And the company now plans to transform Earn.com into Coinbase Earn, a website with educational content to learn more about cryptocurrencies. Users who complete those classes will earn tokens. Coinbase bought Earn.com partly so that it could appoint Earn.com co-founder and CEO Balaji Srinivasan as Coinbase’s CTO. The previous iteration of Earn.com wasn’t a priority for Coinbase. Earn.

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