Tangle: You can't delete a Threads account without canceling the linked Instagram account

The big stories today surrounded Meta’s Twitter competitor Threads, which went live yesterday. If you haven’t been paying attention, we’ve tried to anticipate your questions. Here’s what we learned about the new offering:

• Meta will nuke your Instagram account if you delete your Threads profile.
• Threads passed 30 million downloads in less than 24 hours.
• A Threads “Following” feed is “on the list” of upcoming features.
• Threads won’t be fun — but it will give brands a home away from Twitter.
• Twitter is not happy about this new development.

In other news, Samsung’s next Galaxy Unpacked event is on July 26. Find out what’s likely to be unveiled.

And if you like dirty talk, Lovense’s new sex toy is using ChatGPT and will whisper sweet nothings to you. Select a topic and find out what erotica awaits.

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Meanwhile, it looks like giant funds are back for a bit: Notion closed on €300 million in capital commitments for its fifth fund to invest in business software, but the firm is not into the generative AI hype. On the other end is new fund Public Ventures, which announced its intention to raise $100 million toward investments in early-stage life science and clean tech startups in Canada.

Two clouds make a right: DigitalOcean, a cloud computing company, is shelling out $111 million in cash to acquire cloud computing startup Paperspace.

Speaking of giant funds: Japanese robotics startup Telexistence found itself on the other end of venture capital firms raising big funds when SoftBank led its $170 million funding round.

Frontline workers deserve love, too: Thrive Capital doubles down on Clair with $25 million in new funding for the fintech helping frontline workers get paid instantly.

MOVEit moved it for more companies: More organizations have confirmed they are part of the MOVEit-related breaches as hackers claim to publish stolen data.

We touched on Threads so much today: But with so many Twitter-like options out there now, my colleagues focused on Mastodon and Bluesky as ones that are top of mind for people leaving Twitter, and explain why they need to be better:

• In a post-Twitter world, Mastodon and Bluesky need to get on the same page
• What is Bluesky? Everything to know about the app trying to replace Twitter

For your streaming pleasure: Spotify is removing the App Store payment option for legacy subscribers, YouTube is experimenting with a new lock screen feature for Premium users, and TikTok has a new music streaming service in Brazil and Indonesia called TikTok Music.

In today’s talk of all things that go: Austin dwellers will now be able to see Volkswagen testing its self-driving ID Buzz vans. Over in India, the sale of electric two-wheeler sales hit a speed bump. And Fiat is full of surprises for its cute EV.

To the moon: The Indian Space Research Organisation plans to launch its Chandrayaan-3 moon lander next week, four years after a previous mission failed.

Should you move to a new state for tax savings before selling your startup?

Once an acquisition is in the works, it’s natural for founders in high-tax states to start thinking about safeguarding their newfound wealth.

“On a $30 million exit, a founder could save approximately $4.3 million by moving from California to Florida or approximately $4.4 million by moving from New York City to Florida,” writes Peyton Carr, managing director of Keystone Global Partners.

“That’s a lot of incentive to pull up the stakes and head to Miami,” but unless you follow state-level guidelines about where you spend time and generate income, “your move is likely to trigger an audit.”

Five more from TC+:

15 investors lift the lid on the biggest surprises of H1 2023

Europe is more of a fuzzy tech cloud than a functioning ecosystem

Is political unrest taking a toll on Israeli startups?

Ask Sophie: What do I need to know about getting a J-1 exchange visa?

Crypto funding drops for fifth straight quarter as investors continue to pull back

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