Thursday, June 27, 2024

Welcome to TechCrunch AM! This morning, we have notes on how a Russian civilian in the U.S. helped launch cyber attacks against Ukraine; another antitrust lawsuit for Amazon; and why SpaceX is getting to deorbit the International Space Station. We’ve also got news of fresh funds for AI in enterprise, chatbots trying to be therapists, what Netflix learned from video games, and how Chinese AI companies are filling the hole left by OpenAI. Let’s get to work! — Rebecca

TechCrunch Top 3

Image Credits: FBI | Screenshot: TechCrunch

1. You could make a movie based on this story: The DOJ has charged a Russian civilian with conspiracy to destroy Ukrainian government computer systems as part of a widespread hacking effort by Russia ahead of its invasion of Ukraine. The 22-year-old Russian allegedly used crypto to buy and set up servers from an unnamed U.S.-based company, allowing Russian hackers to launch cyberattacks against Ukraine with data-destroying malware. Read More

2. Amazon hit with fresh antitrust suit in UK: The class-action lawsuit, which seeks more than £2.7 billion in damages (~$3.4 billion), alleges that the e-commerce giant has abused its position to favor its own products and services. There have been similar lawsuits across the pond against Amazon, in addition to complaints that the company uses third-party data to launch competing products. Read More

3. SpaceX has scored $843M from NASA to develop a spacecraft that will deorbit the International Space Station in 2030. It’s almost ironic that SpaceX, which has galvanized the proliferation of commercially owned space stations, will be the company tasked with taking down the ISS. Read More

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Morning Must Reads

Image Credits: Google

Google Chrome gets a little bit smarter: Google is adding new features to Chrome on mobile devices. One of the new features is shortcuts for local search results: If you Google “chiropractor near me,” you’ll see shortcut buttons like “Call,” “Directions,” and “Reviews.” This is coming to Android devices first, and iOS devices will get the feature later this fall. Read More

The chatbot will see you now: Can chatbots replace human therapists? The founders of startup Sonia think so. They’re offering an “AI therapist” that users can talk to or text with via an iOS app. Speaking as the daughter of a therapist, I think it’s difficult to replace the human connection, but chatbots like these could democratize access to therapy for those who can’t afford to see a human therapist. I just wish the three founders of this company had some background in psychology… Read More

Sat Sri Akal, Google: Google is adding support for 110 languages to its translation service, including Punjabi, Afar, Cantonese, Nko, Manx, Tamazight and Tok Pisin. The newly added languages represent over 614 million speakers or about 8% of the world’s population, according to Google. Some of the languages don’t have any active speakers, but people are working to preserve those languages, so this is a worthy effort. Read More

You get an AI assistant, and you get an AI assistant… French startup Dust wants to help companies create custom AI assistants that connect with their data and documents to help employees work more efficiently. So HR teams can talk to AI when they want to double-check corporate policy or engineering and data teams could ask a bot to write an SQL query on their customer base. Read More

And another one for enterprise AI: Many founders and VCs think AI agents that can perform actions autonomously – like copying info from an email and pasting it into a spreadsheet – are the next frontier of genAI. Orby is another startup that’s cropped up to that end. Its genAI platform promises to not just automate workflows that involve data entry, documents processing and forms validation, but also to learn and act on workflows in real time. Read More

Curation comes to Bluesky: Users of social network Bluesky can now create a curated list of people and custom feeds to follow. Bluesky is calling this feature a “Starter Pack,” and its goal is to help new users find interesting content out of the gate. Read More

Keeping Salesforce secure: Securing cloud services is an ongoing challenge for enterprises. That’s why Odaseva has built its business to solely focus on securing Salesforce environments. If that goal seems weirdly specific, first consider that the founder used to work at Salesforce helping some of its biggest clients figure out how to use Salesforce and make sure it was secure, so he’s got unique insights to tap. And also consider that Salesforce has over 150,000 company clients worldwide that could benefit from Odaseva’s service. Read More

Chips on the edge: Demand for chips has skyrocketed with the generative AI boom, and investors are throwing money at new solutions to help businesses end their reliance on Nvidia. One AI chip startup that’s gone somewhat under the radar is Axelera. The startup focuses on chips that run AI on edge devices, and it’s just raised $68 million to expand to new markets ahead of full production of its flagship Metis AI platform. Read More

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Around the Web

Amazon wants to compete with Shein, Temu: Why should you care about the environment or waste if the price is right? Amazon plans to launch a new section of its site dedicated to low-priced fashion and lifestyle items that will allow Chinese sellers to ship directly to U.S. consumers, reports The Information. The storefront will feature a range of unbranded items, many priced under $20. Such a move only threatens to flood the American market with even more cheaply made, easily broken, environmentally unfriendly fast fashion and products. Read More

Netflix really likes video games: Netflix added video games to its subscription service in 2021, and since then, the company has learned a few things. One is that recognizable, established brands like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are a constant across entertainment. Another is that subscribers love “snackable” entertainment, bite-sized, quick-hit mobile experiences, reports The Washington Post. Read More

OpenAI’s China ban boosts local AI leaders: OpenAI’s banning access to its services in China is shaking things up for the country’s AI industry. Local leaders like Baidu and Alibaba are moving to grab more market share, reports Bloomberg. After OpenAI sent memos to Chinese users about its ban, a handful of companies and startups have begun offering incentives to developers making the switch. Read More

Before You Go

Image Credits: Directo

From TikTok viral to Chrome extension: Sometimes, you can actually learn things on TikTok – like how to save money on travel by booking directly with hotels and Airbnb properties. A new startup, Directo, aims to help travelers find those same deals with the help of a Chrome extension that points you to a property’s website. Read More