Author: Bilal

Levitate, a Raleigh, North Carolina-based marketing platform and customer relationship solution provider, has raised an additional $6 million for its AI-powered software offering small businesses an alternative to mass blast emailing. To date, the startup has raised $12 million from investors, including Tippet Venture Partners, Durham, North Carolina-based Bull City Venture Partners and angel investor … Continue reading Levitate raises $6M for its ‘keep-in-touch’ email marketing solution aimed at smaller businesses Continue Reading →

Pandora is launching interactive voice ads into wider public testing, the company announced this morning. The music streaming service first introduced the new advertising format, where users verbally respond to advertiser prompts, back in December with help from a small set of early adopters, including Doritos, Ashley HomeStores, Unilever, Wendy’s, Turner Broadcasting, Comcast and Nestlé. … Continue reading Pandora launches interactive voice ads into beta testing Continue Reading →

Contracts contain a lot of easy-to-miss details, especially for companies that need to deal with high volumes of paperwork. At the same time, many lack access to software that makes the process easier by digitizing contracts. SirionLabs, the contract management software startup backed by Tiger Global, wants to help with a new product called SirionAE. While … Continue reading Tiger Global-backed SirionLabs launches SirionAE to make contract management easier for SMEs Continue Reading →

Streaming media platform Plex announced today it’s further expanding into live TV with the addition of over 80 free live TV channels accessible by free users and subscribers alike. The company had already allowed consumers to capture and record live TV by way of a digital antenna and tuner connected to a Plex media server, but this required investment … Continue reading Plex launches a live TV service with over 80 free channels, most available worldwide Continue Reading →

In a bid to further expand into the world of audio production, the paper of record has acquired the one podcast (other than your own) that your parents have definitely heard of. The New York Times Company issued a press release last night noting that has entered into an agreement to purchase Serial Productions, the podcasting … Continue reading The New York Times is buying the production studio behind ‘Serial’ for $25M Continue Reading →

The cybersecurity industry is at a turning point. Traditional security approaches were already struggling to deal with rising cyberattacks, a shift to cloud and explosive growth in Internet of Things  (41.6 billion IoT devices by 2025, anyone?). Then came the COVID-19 pandemic and all the changes that were fomenting for years accelerated, with remote work becoming the … Continue reading Taking on the perfect storm in cybersecurity Continue Reading →

You might not know Gorilla Glass by name, but odds are pretty good you own at least one device sporting Corning’s chemically strengthened glass composite. It’s been a ubiquitous feature of consumer products ranging from smartphones to wearables for more than a decade now, courtesy of excellent drop and scratch resistance. All in all, it … Continue reading Gorilla Glass Victus can survive a two-meter drop and is set to arrive on a Samsung device soon Continue Reading →

Camping has been on the rise, especially among younger people, for the past couple years. Even during a pandemic, camping represents a relatively safe way to get back on the road again. Arrive Outdoors, a startup based out of Santa Monica, is looking to capitalize on the growing popularity of camping and interest in outdoor activities … Continue reading Arrive Outdoors, the gear rental platform for outdoor adventures, raises $4.75 million Continue Reading →

SpaceX  and NASA are aiming to launch the first official operational mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon human-rated spacecraft sometime in September, the agency revealed via a media update this week. The launch had been tracking towards an August date, but the updated timeframe indicates “late September,” allowing time for the completion of the current Crew … Continue reading SpaceX and NASA target September for first operational astronaut crew launch Continue Reading →

Zoom has run away with the prize in the last few months for becoming the video calling platform of choice for people confined to their homes, whether they are making work calls or friend calls. No one really talks about “Teamsing up” (“Skyping,” perhaps?), or “Hangoutsing” or “Meeting“, or indeed “Roomsing.” But many people talk about … Continue reading Facebook raises its Zoom game, lets Messenger Rooms broadcast via Live Continue Reading →