Author: Bilal

Apple  today is again taking to the press to fight back against claims of anti-competitive practices on its App Store. Last month, the company detailed the results of a commissioned study that showed how Apple wasn’t receiving a cut of revenue on the majority of App Store transactions — $519 billion in commerce. This time, Apple is touting … Continue reading Apple digs in heels over its App Store commission structure with release of new study Continue Reading →

Back in 2016, Mobalytics  wowed the judges at Disrupt SF with its data-based coach for the exploding competitive gaming world, winning the Startup Battlefield. The company is building on the success of the past few years with a new funding round and a compelling new collaboration with Tobii that uses eye-tracking to provide powerful insights into gamers’ skills. Mobalytics … Continue reading Mobalytics raises $11M and adds eye tracking metrics to its automated gaming coach Continue Reading →

WhatsApp  plans to offer credit, insurance and pension products to lower-income individuals and those in rural areas in India and help digitize local small and medium-sized businesses as the Facebook  service looks to make a digital payments push in its biggest market by users. The instant messaging app maker has been working with banks — including ICICI, Kotak … Continue reading WhatsApp to pilot projects to deliver credit, insurance and pension to users in India Continue Reading →

Glimpse is giving Airbnb hosts a way to make extra money while also supplying their accommodations with new products. The startup was founded by CEO Akash Raju, COO Anuj Mehta and CPO Kushal Negi, who all attended Purdue University together. It’s part of the current batch of startups at accelerator Y Combinator  — where, coincidentally or not, Airbnb … Continue reading YC-backed Glimpse helps Airbnb hosts make money through product placement Continue Reading →

Tesla  extended its profitability streak to four quarters today, its longest period of profitability to date according to Q2 earnings it disclosed after the market closed. Tesla hit that profitability mark despite nearly flat quarter-over-quarter revenues — and a 5% drop compared to the same period last year — thanks to a reduction in operating expenses and an … Continue reading Tesla stretches profit streak to four quarters, gains 6% in after-hours trading Continue Reading →

Quantum science is just getting started, and although we’ve already hit some important milestones in both theory and practice, basic research is still needed in just about every nook and cranny of the field. To that end the National Science Foundation  has dedicated $75 million to the establishment of three brand new scientific institutes. “Through the Quantum Leap … Continue reading $75M in federal grants will fund a new trio of quantum institutes Continue Reading →

I’ve learned a lot during this pandemic. About myself, about the world. But perhaps most important of all, I’ve learned the value of a good chair. In normal years I’m rarely home, between work and travel, and as such it’s not something I gave much thought to. So naturally, I spent the first month and … Continue reading The Herman Miller x Logitech gaming chair will set you back $1,500 Continue Reading →

How’s your 60-second pitch working for ya? Could it stand a refresh? Get ready to learn new and better ways to make your pitch more effective at opening doors to opportunity. Step one: register here — it won’t cost you a dime. Step two: tune in and join us tomorrow, July 23 at 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. … Continue reading Watch & interact with these 5 startups competing in tomorrow’s Pitchers & Pitches session Continue Reading →

Facebook  is testing a new design for Facebook Pages  that will, among other things, remove the “Like” count, offer a cleaner and more readable layout, and make it easier for those who operate Pages to actually use and manage them. These features and others were initially tested with a small percentage of public figures on the mobile app, … Continue reading Facebook tests a new Page design with a cleaner layout and no more ‘Like’ button Continue Reading →

When you need a loan, the cost and speed of getting it can be as critical to get right as the financing itself, a principle that might be even more relevant today in our shaky pandemic-hit economy than ever before. Today, a company that proposes to cut both the time and price for securing financing, … Continue reading UK’s Selina Finance raises $53M for its SMB loans platform based on home equity Continue Reading →