Kesha may have taken the dollar sign out of her name, but now, the singer is thinking about money again — not for herself, but to fund the seed round of her new startup, Smash. According to Kesha’s Instagram post, Smash will be a “community-based platform to connect and protect music creators,” which aligns with […]

Last week, Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok experienced a “bug” that made it tell users about the “white genocide” conspiracy theory in South Africa, even when prompted with questions that had nothing to do with the topic … and soon after, Grok expressed skepticism over the Holocaust death toll, which it chalked up to a “programming […]

Discord is entering its second decade as a company and is seeking to go public. Along the way, it’s changed the way that online communities interact, turning groups that may have previously existed as forums or message boards into multi-channel instant message servers. Now, everything finds a home on Discord, whether it’s an AI platform […]

The social fitness app Strava has made two acquisitions over the last month and change: On Thursday, Strava acquired cycling app The Breakaway, following its acquisition of Runna last month. Incubated in Y Combinator’s Summer 2021 class, The Breakaway uses AI to create personalized training plans for cyclists working toward specific goals. Runna, a U.K.-based […]

Christian Selig, the iOS developer who ran the beloved third-party Reddit client Apollo, is joining the new iteration of Digg as an advisor. Earlier this year, Digg’s original founder Kevin Rose and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian acquired what was left of Digg in an attempt to revitalize what was formerly known as “the internet’s homepage.” […]

AI software company Builder.ai is entering insolvency proceedings, a company spokesperson confirmed to TechCrunch. The Microsoft-backed unicorn, which has raised more than $450 million in funding, rose to prominence for its AI-based platform that aimed to simplify the process of building apps and websites. According to the spokesperson, Builder.ai, also known as Engineer.ai Corporation, is […]

“I’ve got a pretty wild story to tell you,” the early YouTube star Caspar Lee says in a TikTok. He goes on to tell the story of how a startup founder slid into his LinkedIn DMs with a pitch about an eco-friendly deodorant called Wild. He ignored the message at first, but his cousin Sasha […]

As the playoffs rage on, Bluesky announced that it is beta testing a new feature during the NBA playoffs. While an NBA game is in progress, a red border with a “live” designation will appear around posts from the NBA’s account. When users click on the NBA’s profile picture, they will be redirected to the […]

It’s Friday afternoon and I’m listening to Bowdoin College’s radio station, interspersed with ambient car honking noises. I am not in Maine. I am not in a car. I am at my desk. This is Internet Roadtrip. Internet Roadtrip is what I will call an MMORTG (massive multiplayer online road trip game). Neal Agarwal, the […]

Spotify announced last week that it would roll out public play counts on all podcasts as a way of “helping attract new fans.” But podcasters swiftly responded with criticism of the new feature — mainly, that it would further promote podcasts that already have large audiences while making smaller shows less appealing to new listeners. […]

Apple Maps announced a collaboration with the MICHELIN Guide, The Infatuation, and Golf Digest to help users find recommended restaurants and golf courses in their area. Starting in the U.S., users will be able to filter their Maps searches to see restaurants with MICHELIN ratings, which denote exceptional dining experiences. But if you’re on the […]

The Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) has been reintroduced into Congress. If passed into law, this bill could impose some of the most significant legislative changes that the internet has seen in the U.S. since the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) of 1998. As it currently stands, KOSA would be able to hold social […]

Hasan Piker, one of the most popular left-wing political creators in the U.S., says he was detained and questioned at the Chicago O’Hare Airport upon returning to the U.S. after a trip to France. In a stream in which he addressed the experience, Piker claims that he was questioned about his views on Trump, Hamas, […]

Saudi Arabia’s ruler, Mohammed bin Salman, launched an AI company called Humain to bolster the country’s artificial intelligence sector. The company plans to build out the country’s AI infrastructure, including the construction of data centers. This news arrives as Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and Mark Zuckerberg are expected to attend a U.S.-Saudi investment forum on […]

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is using his olive oil inefficiently in an “offense to horticulture,” the Financial Times humorously reports. For its “Lunch with the FT” series, the paper joined Altman in his kitchen. He prepared a garlicky pasta and salad, taking a rare break from his demanding job of advocating for the disruption of […]

The mobile controller company Backbone unveiled its Backbone Pro controller this week, which brings iOS and Android gaming experiences to the next level. A successor to the Backbone One controller, the Pro features full-size joysticks, re-mappable buttons, and Bluetooth compatibility, making for a more premium gaming setup. Unlike its predecessor, the Backbone Pro doesn’t need […]

On YouTube, hundreds of thousands of viewers around the world are staring at an unmoving broadcast of the Sistine Chapel chimney. Occasionally, a seagull will swoop in and perch atop the roof for a few minutes. But for the most part, nothing happens. On Wednesday, the College of Cardinals started the process of picking the […]

“Day 25 of starting over my whole entire life,” Raegan Lynch narrates over a short video. “Right now, I’m wandering around the city I just moved to, in a country I’d never seen, all by myself after my relationship ended, and I had to leave my old life behind.” It’s a pretty enticing hook, which […]

Google is reportedly spinning up a film and TV project called 100 Zeroes. According to a report from Business Insider, this initiative is intended to make young audiences feel more positively about Google’s products, as well as tech at large. The report also states that Google is not intending to share these projects via YouTube, […]

Epic Games is taking a victory lap. After notching a big win against Apple in a years-long legal dispute, Epic announced that its Epic Games Store will allow developers to open webshops, which can offer players out-of-app purchases to circumvent fees from Apple and Google. Epic has been in a long legal battle with Apple […]