Friday, April 12, 2024

Good afternoon, and welcome back to TechCrunch PM! In today’s big story, we learned that data on more than half a million Roku users was stolen by hackers in a second incident. Meanwhile, if you’re a coffee lover, check out this new pot. And if you’re into robotics, there may be a job for you. In addition, Dungeons & Dragons becomes a play and it looks like Instagram is getting a search bar. Have a great weekend!

Correction from Thursday’s newsletter: PayJoy is a San Francisco–based company that offers lending to the underserved in emerging markets.

TechCrunch Top 3

Image Credits: Roku/TechCrunch

Roku says 576,000 user accounts hacked: The streaming giant discovered a second incident occurred as it was telling some 15,000 users that hackers had stolen their usernames and passwords. Read More

Fellow steps away from its usual grind: A manufacturer of unique coffee machines is taking a more traditional approach with its new Aiden coffee maker. Read More

Looking for a job in robotics? We got you: Hardware editor Brian Heater compiled over 70 companies with open jobs. Check out the one that is looking to fill 50 roles. Read More

Afternoon must-reads

Image Credits: Unsplash

Searching … searching: Meta is experimenting with putting Meta AI in the Instagram search bar for both chat with AI and content discovery. Read More

Turning cardboard boxes into insulation: Spring Lane Capital leads a $28 million Series B round into CleanFiber, a company working to remove corrugated cardboard out of landfills by turning it into cellulose insulation. Read More

When improv comedians pretend to be wizards … : It turns into a hit. Dropout’s Dungeons & Dragons play show, Dimension 20, is getting pretty close to selling out Madison Square Garden. Read More

How Ukraine’s cyber police fight back against Russia’s hackers: Reporter Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai sat down with Yevhenii Panchenko, the head of operational analysis in the Cyberpolice Department of the National Police of Ukraine, to discuss crypto, ransomware and documenting war crimes after Russia's invasion. Read More

Security engineer gets jail time for crypto hack: Shakeeb Ahmed, a cybersecurity engineer convicted of stealing around $12 million in crypto, was sentenced to three years in prison. Read More

Pitch Deck Teardown: Haje Jan Kamps said “Xpanceo is betting big on turning us all into cyborgs with smart contact lenses.” But did he like the company’s $40 million seed deck? Read More

It’s all about the remix: Tech veteran and app researcher Chris Messina found some code showing that Spotify is working on mixing tools that would allow users to remix songs on the streaming service. Read More

On the pods: To close out the week, Equity is discussing Automattic buying Beeper for $125 million in a rising theme of startup acquisitions, PayJoy’s massive new run rate, and the Proxima Fusion round that could help bring the next energy revolution a little bit closer to reality. We also looked at Y Combinator’s evaporating number of participating startups from Latin America, which we posit could have something to do with fintech falling out of favor with investors. Listen here

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Around the web

Image Credits: Getty Images / akindo

Does Bitcoin need an upgrade? Bob Bodily, co-founder and CEO of Bioniq, a BTC Ordinals marketplace, thinks so. Read his perspective in CoinDesk. Read More

Meanwhile, another Boeing whistleblower comes forward this week with claims about the company’s jets, including the 787 Dreamliner. NPR has more. Read More

And The Verge reports that Google is shutting down its One VPN service. Read More

A MESSAGE FROM BRAINDATE

Unlocking Success: A Deep Dive Into Top 3 of the Most Successful Events in Braindate History

What does it take to connect thousands of participants at large-scale events on a deep, meaningful level? It starts with Braindate! Check out some of Braindate's most successful implementations at tech events.

TechCrunch Minute

Apple’s stance on right to repair changes with new iPhone policy: While Apple’s move is welcome to many, it does answer some questions: If your iPhone breaks, should you have the right to fix it? And if you want to fix your iPhone, should you be able to do that yourself, or be forced to go to the manufacturer? Hit play and let's talk!