Author: GT

Bitcoin could be slowly picking up pace and might soon reach a record high of $120,000, says Geoffrey Kendrick, global head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered. He says key indicators are pointing to a good time to buy the asset. According to Kendrick, detailed in a new report sent to The Block, the leg up is driven by three significant factors: the U.S. Treasury term premium hitting a 12-year-high, aggressive whale accumulation, and the definition of ‘safety-asset’ slowly turning away from gold to Bitcoin via ETFs. He also remarked that American-based investors have been increasingly buying Bitcoin since…

The world has a trash problem. The amount of stuff we throw away is expected to nearly double, to 3.8 billion metric tons, by 2050. Reducing what we use would go a long way to addressing the issue, but let’s face it, we’re not very good at buying less either. That leaves recycling, which has its own problems. People routinely try to recycle dirty yogurt cups or toss plastic in the aluminum bin. It all makes recycling more expensive because, ultimately, someone has to manually pick out the unwanted stuff. In response, several companies have been building automated systems to…

The speed with which new technologies hit the market is nothing compared to the speed with which talented researchers find creative ways to use them, train them, even turn them into things we can’t live without. One such researcher is MIT MAD Fellow Alexander Htet Kyaw, a graduate student pursuing dual master’s degrees in architectural studies in computation and in electrical engineering and computer science.Kyaw takes technologies like artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and robotics, and combines them with gesture, speech, and object recognition to create human-AI workflows that have the potential to interact with our built environment, change how we shop,…

Coinbase Asset Management is rolling out a new fund for institutions to receive a yield on their bitcoin (BTC) holdings. Opening on May 1 for non-US institutional investors, the Coinbase Bitcoin Yield Fund aims to deliver a 4% to 8% annualized net return, according to a press release on Monday. Among those backing the fund, Abu Dhabi-based Aspen Digital said yield will initially be generated through basis trading, with lending and options strategies to be used in the future. The so-called bitcoin basis trade involves capitalizing on the spread between futures and spot markets. It became popular at the tail…

It’s been a busy year for TechCrunch events — and it’s about to get even bigger. StrictlyVC, our boutique, highly exclusive event series for VCs and startups, is crossing the Atlantic this May with stops in London and Athens! We’re bringing StrictlyVC’s insider conversations to Europe. On May 8, we’ll dive into Athens’ booming tech momentum with a special appearance by the prime minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Then, on May 13, we’ll head to London to explore the investment and financial strategies shaping Europe’s tech ecosystem. If you’re thinking about expanding globally — or wondering how to start —…

(Bloomberg) — Cryptocurrency investors waded back into the market last week, riding a surge in Bitcoin. Most Read from Bloomberg Exchange-traded funds tracking Bitcoin and Ether attracted more than $3.2 billion last week, with the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (ticker IBIT) alone seeing a nearly $1.5 billion inflow — the most this year, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Other Bitcoin-focused funds also saw meaningful infusions, with investors adding more than $620 million to the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) and roughly $574 million into the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC). Meanwhile, Ether products posted their first net weekly inflows…

Pavlo Gonchar | Lightrocket | Getty ImagesSpotify said Monday it paid more than $100 million to podcast publishers and podcasters worldwide in the first quarter of 2025.The figure includes creators on the platform across all formats and agreements, including the platform’s biggest fish, Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Theo Von, the company said.Rogan, host of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Cooper of “Call Her Daddy” and “This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von” were among the top podcasts on Spotify globally in 2024.Rogan and Cooper’s exclusivity deals with Spotify have ended, and while Rogan signed a new Spotify deal last year worth…

The hub of AI innovation is here — don’t miss out on the last 7 days of Early Bird ticket savings! AI is reshaping the world, and TechCrunch Sessions: AI is where you’ll witness the future unfold. Join 1,000+ founders, investors, researchers, and innovators on June 5 at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall for a full day of cutting-edge insights, networking, and discovery. Last chance to save before May 4 at 11:59 p.m. PT Save up to $210 on your single pass. Buy one Early Bird pass, get 50% off a second — perfect for your co-founder, collaborator, or AI-obsessed friend.…

The privacy-minded cryptocurrency Monero (CRYPTO: XMR) soared on Monday morning. As of 12:45 p.m. ET, it had gained 14.5% in 24 hours. Unfortunately, this sudden jump was the result of some unsavory financial moves apparently involving a large Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) heist. Monero started a rapid price gain on Sunday night, and market observers were left with more questions than answers at first. The price gain didn’t match up with common catalysts such as a large number of new Monero holders, a meme coin push on social media, or Monero analysis in traditional large-scale media, such as TV channels and…

Google CEO Sundar Pichai, arrives for a US Senate bipartisan Artificial Intelligence (AI) Insight Forum at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on September 13, 2023. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty ImagesGoogle paid $8.27 million for CEO Sundar Pichai’s personal security in 2024, according to a new filing with the the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.That figure is up nearly 22% from $6.78 million in 2023, due in part to a number of security measures taken during Pichai’s busy year.”In 2024, Sundar’s security arrangements included residential security…