Fisker Ocean’s early road had twists and turns

Good afternoon, and welcome to TechCrunch PM. We made it to Friday, and your reward is a lovely chronicling of what happens when cars don’t run right. Also, find out which company plunked down $7 million on a Super Bowl ad, who’s making layoffs, why X is getting into sports betting and who let Haje pick apart their pitch deck. Have a great weekend!

— Christine

TechCrunch PM Top 3

Fisker’s growing pains: Some early Fisker Ocean owners flagged a number of issues, from sudden loss of power to the hood opening while driving. We show you how some of these came about and how the company continues to work on issues that arise with its electric SUV.

AR’s enterprise future: Adoption of augmented reality and virtual reality hasn’t quite caught on in the business world — ask Mark Zuckerberg how he knows. That’s not stopping Apple from working to change perceptions.

Football’s biggest day: Among the biggest brands in the world will be one hoping to grab some of that recognition. Here’s why B2B software Papaya Global bought a 30-second ad in Sunday’s big game.

More top reads

More layoffs: Grammarly is the latest tech company to restructure its business, resulting in layoffs. The AI writing company is cutting 230 people to focus on an AI-enabled workforce.

Sleep apnea detection on your wrist: Samsung’s Galaxy Watch was approved by the FDA to detect sleep apnea. This is going to revolutionize someone’s sleep and is only the beginning of what devices will eventually tell us about our bodies.

What’s next for STIRR: Now that the free, ad-supported streaming TV service STIRR has a new parent company, expect to see some expansion, a lot more things to watch and better app functionalities.

This year will be a turning point for DEI: There’s a diversity, equity and inclusion backlash going on in the Big Tech world, and we have pulled together what you need to know about the legal and corporate challenges going on.

Product experts in your pocket: A new $5 million fund started by 20VC will invest in early-stage startups and provide insights into product growth from some of the top company experts.

Pitch Deck Teardown: Over on TechCrunch+, Haje takes a look at Xyte’s 27-slide deck. Find out what he liked and didn’t like.

Get social: Meta wants a happier environment on its platforms and decided that Instagram and Threads will no longer proactively recommend political content. Next, X and BetMGM have a new partnership to introduce a sports betting service on X. And third-party developers are left in a lurch after some social networks won’t play nice with their APIs.

On the pods

Today on Equity, Mary Ann, Alex and Kirsten discuss the headlines of the week, touching on such gems as Adam Neumann wanting to buy WeWork from bankruptcy, what’s going on with venture capital in Latin America, earnings, ad spend and the state of the economy. There’s plenty more. Listen here.

Join Waymo, Signal, and more at StrictlyVC Los Angeles

Join StrictlyVC’s cocktail party in Los Angeles on February 29 to hear from leaders like Meredith Whittaker (president, Signal) and Tekedra Mawakana (co-CEO, Waymo), and connect with top VCs and entrepreneurs. Tickets are $150 — register today.

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