Here’s all the top news from today’s Google Pixel Event 2023

Wednesday, October 04, 2023

Today, the TechCrunch team was live for the Google Pixel Event, and you all enjoyed every minute of it, making it today’s top story. While I rounded up all of the Pixel and Android 14 goodness into one giant confection, here were some of your favorites:

Meanwhile, over in India, Slice, one of the country’s fintech unicorns, said it reached a milestone: an approval to merge with a bank. Find out why this is so rare.

And it seems like open banking led to a fintech boom, particularly in the European Union, and some companies, including Brite Payments, are catching the tailwinds. The account-to-account company secured $60 million after a good 2022. Read more.

Image Credits: Google

More top reads

On their own: Yahoo spins out Vespa, its search tech, into an independent company. Here’s how that came about.

When I dip, you dip, VC dips: New third-quarter stats from PitchBook show that the global VC market continues to stumble. It wasn’t bad everywhere, though. (TC+)

More generative AI for your Meta: Meta advertisers now have their own generative AI features. Get the scoop.

Tucked in: Flexible short-term housing options are everywhere now. For those who want longer stays but similar vibe, meet Habyt, an Airbnb-style platform aimed at longer stays and “flexible living.” It just raised $42 million.

No more standing in that post office line: Uber will do it for you. A new feature enables couriers to drop your package off at the post office. Learn about Return a Package.

Identities, passwords and M&A, oh my!: We have a pair of Okta news stories for you. First up, the identity management giant scooped by Uno, a password manager, for the purpose of developing a personal tier. Read more. Next, Okta plans to weave AI across its entire identity platform using multiple models. Get the scoop.

Embedded finance is indeed everywhere: Rainforest, a startup helping software companies embed financial services and payment features, raises $8.5 million. The prediction is coming true.

Eat here: Resy and Eater co-founder has backed hospitality company Blackbird Labs, which raised $24 million to help restaurants create loyalty programs. Here’s how.

Fitness from afar: Sometimes you need a little push when it comes to exercise. CoPilot wants to get you the motivation you crave. The training app, which matches users with remote fitness coaches, raised $6.3 million. Now you have no excuse.

More for your Wednesday:

Recapitalization, $60M Series D support growth of e-commerce financier Clearco

At One Ventures’ $375M new fund shows climate tech is still hot (TC+)

Rabbit is building an AI model that understands how software works

News app turned X competitor Artifact now lets users generate AI images for their posts

Image Credits: SOPA Images / Contributor / Getty Images

Employee liquidity isn’t a myth, but it isn’t easy to provide either

Offering equity to startup workers is a standard practice, but the cat is finally out of the bag: “Many employees are slowly realizing that the stock options they have been banking on are essentially worthless,” writes Rebecca Szkutak.

At TechCrunch Disrupt, she interviewed three panelists to get their thoughts on how startups can retain and reward employees by offering them “early access” to liquidity as a motivator:

Maria Dramalioti-Taylor, general partner, Beacon Capital
Tyson Hendricksen, founder and CEO, Notice
Amir Ashkenazi, founder and CEO, Switchboard

TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams get ahead of the pack. You can sign up here. Use code “DC” for a 15% discount on an annual subscription.

On the pods

This week on Found, our old friend Darrell Etherington joins Becca Szkutak to talk with Professor Esther Rodriguez-Villegas from Acurable. Acurable is a medical device company that makes patient-friendly wearable devices that accurately diagnose and manage respiratory conditions at home.

As a career-long academic, Rodriguez-Villegas never intended to be a founder until she learned about how the currently available medical devices made it extremely difficult to detect and treat diseases like sleep apnea and epilepsy.

On this episode, they talk about balancing academic research and running a company, how to scale a medical device startup, and how Acurable has spread to hospitals throughout the U.K. by just word of mouth. Listen here.