Reddit could be a potential ‘meme stock’

Good afternoon, and welcome to TechCrunch PM. Today, we continue to look at Reddit’s IPO, Bitcoin’s value remains high, Block Party has a new party, and Covariant wants to help robots think like people. We also have a new TechCrunch feature to share with you, and we talk about Telegram’s move toward profitability and Airbnb’s new rules on indoor and outdoor house cameras.

— Christine

TechCrunch PM Top 3

Reddit’s IPO continues to be worth watching: Reddit plans to sell around 22 million shares, priced between $31 and $34, according to a new SEC filing. However, by allowing community members to sell their shares immediately, it sets the company up to be a potential “meme stock.” Meanwhile, Alex Wilhelm takes a deeper dive into the S-1.

Bitcoin hits new all-time high: Bitcoin hit $72,700 earlier today and is currently settled at around $72,600. What was initially driven by the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs is now being pushed higher ahead of a “halving” event, which will limit the amount of new supply put into circulation from bitcoin miners.

Are you ready?: Ready Player One creator has a new metaverse battle royale experience.

More top reads

Block Party pivots: When X changed around a bunch of its API rules in 2023, Block Party was one of the victims. The company, which would block trolls and harassers on X, has a new product called Privacy Party related to helping users with their privacy settings across all social media networks.

Robots thinking like people: Covariant is building ChatGPT for robots, but for now, its software is largely deployed on industrial robotic arms doing a variety of familiar warehouse tasks, including jobs like bin picking.

Telegram is almost profitable: Telegram founder Pavel Durov said that the company expects to hit profitability next year with the potential to go public in the future. The chat app, which crossed 900 million users, is making “hundreds of millions of dollars” through ads and subscriptions, Durov told the Financial Times in an interview.

Alphabet spinoff has new data center concept: Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners launched Verrus, a new concept for more flexible data center energy management.

Funding round: Stell raised $4 million to continue developing a tool for requirements management that allows teams to track, verify and validate requirements on complex projects.

New feature alert!: Tune into Alex Wilhelm’s new feature called TechCrunch Minute. Today he went through Elon Musk’s beef with Sam Altman and the rest of the billionaires who are fighting over the future of AI.

TechCrunch Disrupt: Early-bird pricing ends on Friday, March 15 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Beat the deadline, and you can save $1,000 on Attendee, Founder and Investor passes. Students and nonprofits can score a deeply discounted pass for just $95.

Around the web: Electrek has a look at the Porsche Taycan, dubbed one of the fastest cars ever. Meanwhile, Apple Vision Pro has some new tools for healthcare developers. And CNET reports that some Samsung Galaxy phones got security and design upgrades.

Worldcoin injunction defeated: Controversial eyeball-scanning startup Worldcoin failed to get an injunction against a temporary suspension ordered Wednesday by Spain’s data protection authority.

Airbnb bans indoor cameras: After some guests found hidden cameras in their rentals, the home hosting company decided to ban them for good. It even has new rules for outdoor security cameras.

On the pods

On today’s Equity, Alex Wilhelm took a look back at the weekend and what’s ahead in the week. Listen to an interview with Roger Lee and hear our take on Reddit’s IPO financials. We also got into:

• Bitcoin and Ethereum notching big gains in recent days.
• Reddit’s new IPO filing.
• Elon Musk intending to open source Grok.
• Bobby Kotick wanting to buy TikTok.
• Techstars’ $80 million Advancing Cities Fund.
• Griffin Bank’s $24 million Series A extension.
• Ron Miller’s interview with Slack’s new CEO.

Listen here.

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