MGM Resorts says cyberattack that stole customer data will reduce its Q3 profits by $100M

Friday, October 06, 2023

In today’s top story, we bring you an update on the cyberattack at MGM Resorts that was first disclosed in September. The hotel and casino giant confirmed that hackers stole customers’ personal data. Get the scoop.

Next, we hear that a few venture investors and startups in India are considering a stake in Nainital Bank. Read more.

Meanwhile, some new numbers show that India has been a tough market for Netflix. Here’s why.

And the rumored “Superpremium” service Spotify was prepping may becoming a reality soon. Learn more.

Image Credits: Savushkin / Getty Images

More top reads

SBF: Our resident crypto expert Jacquelyn Melinek is on the ground in New York to cover the Sam Bankman-Fried trial and put together the latest updates on the FTX collapse’s courtroom drama. See the On the Pods section below as well. And go inside Matt Huang’s testimony. He is an executive at crypto investment firm Paradigm claiming SBF defrauded investors.

Puzzling: For the old-school gamer in you, Ohm’s Quest is an electronic puzzle console inspired by escape rooms. See what it looks like.

The many levels of X: X, formerly Twitter, will test three tiers of its Premium service, and one of them may be ad-free. Get the scoop.

Ch-ch-ch-changes: Y Combinator tells us about its string of new lieutenants. Meet them.

Human nature, or is it?: Apparently, humans can’t resist breaking AI with boobs and 9/11 memes. Read more.

Hacked: Lyca Mobile says its customer data was stolen during a cyberattack. Here’s what happened.

3 . . . 2 . . . 1: United Launch Alliance sends up two Project Kuiper test satellites for Amazon. Watch the launch.

Risky business: Snap’s AI chatbot draws scrutiny in the U.K. over kids’ privacy concerns. Learn more.

Yum yum batteries: Breathe Battery Technologies bets that software will eat batteries too. Find out why. (TC+)

Pitch Deck Teardown: Check out what Haje had to say about Lupiya’s $8.3 million Series A deck. (TC+)

Another AI app goes viral: EPIK hits No. 1 on the App Store for its yearbook photo feature. Say “cheese!”

Five more to take you into the weekend:

Wisk Aero starts flight testing electric autonomous aircraft in Los Angeles

Some gen AI vendors say they’ll defend customers from IP lawsuits. Others, not so much

Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth fund invests nearly $600M in Reliance Retail at $100B valuation

Bolt CEO discusses company moving on after SEC probe

Stoke Space raises $100M Series B as it looks to reach orbit by 2025

Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

10 investors talk about the future of AI and what lies beyond the ChatGPT hype

Generative AI is the dynamo revving up tech’s latest hype cycle, so Anna Heim launched a three-part investor survey exploring “the various parts of the AI puzzle, where startups have the highest chance of winning, and where open source might overtake closed source.”

Here’s who participated in part one:

Manish Singhal, founding partner, pi Ventures
Rudina Seseri, founder and managing partner, Glasswing Ventures
Lily Lyman, Chris Gardner, Richard Dulude and Brian Devaney of Underscore VC
Karin Klein, founding partner, Bloomberg Beta
Xavier Lazarus, partner, Elaia
Dr. Andre Retterath, partner, Earlybird Venture Capital
Matt Cohen, managing partner, Ripple Ventures

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

Today on Equity, we’re talking about the week’s biggest startup and tech news with help from TC reporter extraordinaire and Found co-host Dominic-Madori Davis. We’re keeping you updated on the SBF trial — which, quite frankly, has us all riveted — and then diving into deals of the week from Rainforest, At One Ventures, Section 32 and Greylock. We will also discuss where venture funding has declined, and how Fearless Fund is being barred from awarding grants to Black women founders. Listen here.

And in case you missed it, this week on Chain Reaction, we teamed up with Equity co-host Alex Wilhelm for a special crossover episode.

Chain Reaction host Jacquelyn Melinek has been on the ground at the Southern District of New York courthouse, listening in to the highly anticipated criminal trial for Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX.

We dove deep into the nitty-gritty details, what transpired the first two days of Bankman-Fried’s trial, as well as who the jurors are, the first two witnesses and who else is expected to speak. Listen here.