Author: GT

It looks like humanoid robots have a long way to go before catching up with human runners. Beijing’s E-Town tech hub hosted what it described as the first world’s first humanoid half-marathon on Saturday, with 21 humanoid robots competing alongside thousands of humans. Bloomberg reports that the winning robot, Tiangong Ultra, was built by the government-backed research institute X-Humanoid and finished the race in two hours and 40 minutes. This would not be an impressive time for a human — the race’s winning male runner finished in one hour and two minutes, and it’s normal for casual runners to complete…

3The leaders of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce said they are investigating how 23andMe’s bankruptcy might affect customers’ data. Representatives Brett Guthrie, Gus Bilirakis, and Gary Palmer (all Republicans) sent a letter Thursday to the genetic testing company’s interim CEO Joe Selsavage asking a number of questions about how 23andMe will handle customer data if the company is sold. The letter also says that some customers have reported problems deleting their data from the 23andMe website, and it notes that direct-to-consumer companies like 23andMe are generally not covered by the protections of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability…

Netflix is building a new search experience aimed at improving the discovery experience, and it’s going to use AI to do it, the company’s CEO Greg Peters said during its first-quarter results conference call. Peters said Netflix is working on “interactive search that’s based on generative technologies” to help people find different titles. Answering an analyst’s question, Peters said the company’s most popular titles that dominate popular conversation draw 1% of traffic, and because of this trend, improving discovery and recommendation is important to the company. “There is more room to improve the discovery and recommendation experience, and therefore provide…

Today’s the day! The application to speak at TechCrunch All Stage closes tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT — this is your final chance to share real-world insights with 1,200+ startup founders and VCs attending the event. Whether you’ve built or backed startups, battled bottlenecks, or cracked the code on growth, the stage is yours. TC All Stage lands in Boston on July 15, and we’re giving the mic to those who’ve lived the scaling grind. Step-by-step: What to expect Make your voice count. Your experience could help the next generation of founders grow smarter and faster. Apply now and you…

Robert Kiyosaki, author of the bestselling Rich Dad Poor Dad, is sounding the alarm — again. In an April 19 post on X (formerly Twitter), the finance educator warned that the U.S. is on the edge of a full-blown “Greater Depression” and told followers to act now before it’s too late. “Credit card debt is at all-time highs. US debt is at all-time highs. Unemployment is rising. 401(k)s are losing. Pensions are being stolen,” Kiyosaki wrote. “USA may be heading for a GREATER DEPRESSION.” The investor says he saw it coming years ago, claiming that his past books like Rich…

Nintendo announced on Friday that it will open Switch 2 preorders in the U.S. on April 24, following a delay due to the Trump administration’s hefty tariffs. Fans feared the long-awaited console would spike in price due to Trump’s import rules on international goods, but Nintendo confirmed the Switch 2 will still cost $449.99 and come out on June 5, as originally announced. Switch 2 accessories, however, will increase in price due to “changes in market conditions,” Nintendo said in a press release. The company added that other products could also face hikes down the road. Most of the Switch…

Kodiak Robotics made a financial move that was ubiquitous in 2021. Yup, the self-driving truck startup plans to go public through a merger with Ares Acquisition Corporation II, a special purpose acquisition company. It’s a bold bet in a market where SPACs have lost their shine and the autonomous vehicle space has numerous shutdowns, including Embark and TuSimple. Today, on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Max Zeff, and Anthony Ha are unpacking the week’s news, including the possible return of the SPAC in an uncertain IPO market. It’s a curious moment for a public debut in general, as Kirsten…

Slovenia’s finance ministry has proposed a 25% tax on capital gains from cryptocurrency starting in 2026, under a draft law aimed at closing a gap in the country’s tax system. The tax will apply to profit made when individuals sell crypto for fiat currency or spend it on goods and services. However, swapping one cryptocurrency for another will remain tax-free, and any gains made before January 1, 2026, will not be taxed, according to the finance ministry’s proposal. The measure is meant to treat crypto gains more like other capital investments, such as stocks or bonds, which are already taxed.…

Humans have found it hard to quit fossil fuels, which is why some argue that we’ll soon need to start geoengineering — that is, modifying the atmosphere to prevent catastrophic warming of the planet. The practice is controversial. Some argue it’s the only solution given that we’ve waited too long to reduce carbon emissions. Others say we shouldn’t be running two uncontrolled experiments on the Earth’s climate (the first being the global burning of fossil fuels). That hasn’t stopped people from trying. And one approach championed by Make Sunsets has drawn the attention of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  The startup…

OpenAI is upgrading ChatGPT’s “memory” again. In a changelog and support pages on OpenAI’s website Thursday, the company quietly announced “Memory with Search,” a feature that lets ChatGPT draw on memories — details from past conversations, such as your favorite foods — to inform queries when the bot searches the web. ChatGPT release notes were updated yesterday with o3 and o4-mini added to ChatGPT on Apr 16, 2025 – but interestingly, they also mention “Memory with Search” (anyone seen this rolling out already? Not for me yet) pic.twitter.com/oVBcJNqf6z — Tibor Blaho (@btibor91) April 18, 2025 The update comes shortly after…