Author: GT

Although there has been significant pushback from artists regarding the proliferation of AI design tools and the content used to train generative models, the companies making the software for creative work are nevertheless building AI into their toolkits. It’s a signal of just how quickly AI has gained importance — regardless of what their customers say, graphic design software makers clearly seem to think they cannot survive without implementing some form of AI. The latest to double down on that strategy is Canva. The company on Thursday said it is adding a suite of new AI features to its platform,…

Meanwhile, a startup offering life insurance and annuities denominated in bitcoin (BTC), raised $40 million in series A funding round, CEO Zac Townsend said on Thursday in an X post. The investment was led by venture capital firms Framework and Fulgur Ventures, with early Bitcoin-advocate Wences Casares also participating. Traditional life insurance pays out in fiat currencies. Meanwhile flips this model, keeping premiums and benefits in bitcoin, aiming to help policyholders guard against inflation and currency devaluation. In countries where local currencies lose value, holding policies in BTC could help preserve purchasing power for future payouts. However, policyholders also take…

A challenge for many tech companies is delivering high-bandwidth, multimodal data — for example, simultaneous audio and video — to users in real time without interruptions. Some firms build solutions in-house, but these often require a lot of upkeep and maintenance. To ease the burden, Russ d’Sa and David Zhao created LiveKit, an open source software package for building apps that can transmit real-time audio and video. They launched the project in 2021 and soon suspected it had business potential. It was a good hunch. LiveKit now has “more than 500 paying customers and over 100,000 developers across its cloud platform…

Jobandtalent, an AI-based “workforce as a service” marketplace that connects people with companies looking for hourly workers, announced it has raised €92 million ($103 million).  The Series F — which includes participation from Atomico, BlackRock, DN Capital, Hercules, Infravia, Kibo, and Kinnevik — values the Madrid, Spain-based company at €1.3 billion ($1.5 billion) post-money.  On the surface, a unicorn raising a decent round of funding from a well-known list of backers might sound like pretty strong news.   The reality is a little different. This is a down round for the company. Jobandtalent, which has operations in 10 countries in Europe, the…

Digital assets company BitGo has collaborated with Voltage to support “instant” Bitcoin transactions, by integrating the Lightning Network. The integration allows exchanges, neobanks, payment providers, and fintech platforms to integrate Lightning, enabling Bitcoin payments that are up to 90% quicker and 90% cheaper compared with traditional “on-chain transfers”. BitGo’s expertise in institutional-grade custody and wallet security is said to help ramp up the adoption of Lightning across the globe, by equipping financial institutions with “secure” payment rails for Bitcoin and stablecoins. Besides, the partnership is said to pave the road for stablecoin payments over Lightning. BitGo CEO Mike Belshe said:…

Season 7 of “Black Mirror” premiered on Thursday, introducing a new mobile game connected to one of its episodes. The game, titled “Thronglets,” from Netflix’s own Night School Studio, serves as a companion to the episode called “Plaything.” Players interact with virtual yellow pets and strive to keep them alive. If players are successful in caring for their pets, the creatures will replicate, making it increasingly challenging to keep up with their needs. The creatures can also gather resources, develop technologies, explore new areas, and unlock tools and buildings to progress more quickly. While it may initially resemble innocent games…

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson is betting on Bitcoin, which he believes could hit $250,000 at the end of 2025 or early 2026. In an interview on the “Beyond the Valley” podcast, the blockchain baron listed a confluence of clearer regulations in the U.S., big tech companies adopting stablecoins, and a potential pivot by the Federal Reserve as reasons behind the crypto market’s next leg up. He said, “Once the Fed lowers interest rates, you’ll have a lot of fast, cheap money, and then it’ll pour into crypto,” His remarks also reflect heightened geopolitical uncertainty and a temporary pause on new…

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon attended the ASU+GSV Summit this week, where experts in education and technology gathered to discuss how AI will impact learning. While speaking on a panel about AI in the workforce, McMahon repeatedly referred to AI as “A1,” like the steak sauce. “You know, AI development — I mean, how can we educate at the speed of light if we don’t have the best technology around to do that?” she said. “I heard … that there was a school system that’s going to start making sure that first graders, or even pre-Ks, have A1 teaching in…

It’s safe to say that Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is entering bear market territory. It’s now down 30% from its January highs, and investors are understandably rattled. Wasn’t 2025 supposed to be the year that Bitcoin skyrocketed in value on its way to $1 million? If you’re feeling nervous about Bitcoin during a market decline, the good news is that there is a tried-and-true investment strategy that seems to be tailor-made for the current situation in the financial markets. That investment strategy is dollar-cost averaging (DCA), and it can be an important tool for crypto investors to capture Bitcoin’s long-term price…

Just one day after TechCrunch revealed that Jeff Bezos is backing a secretive EV startup called Slate Auto, an early version of the company’s low-cost electric pickup truck was spotted in the wild. Reddit user u/discostranger09 posted a photo to the r/whatisthiscar subreddit on Wednesday of a small, dark gray two-seater pickup truck on a flatbed. The user said it was being offloaded from a container outside their office in the Los Angeles Area. The photo was first reported by automotive outlet The Autopian. The truck pictured is, in fact, the one Slate Auto has been working on, according to…