Author: Bilal

We’re a few days away from kicking off TC Early Stage 2020. Join us on July 21-22 for a two-day online masterclass designed to help early-stage startup founders build their business and keep moving forward. Bonus: Buy your ticket now and you’ll get a free annual membership to Extra Crunch, our subscription program focused on startups, founders and investors … Continue reading Get a free annual Extra Crunch membership when you register for Early Stage 2020 Continue Reading →

There’s one thing I can’t stop thinking about every time I look at the Superstrata: Just how quickly the thing would get stolen. That’s no knock against the bike itself — in fact, it’s probably a point in its favor. If anything, it’s probably just another in a long list of signs that I’ve been living … Continue reading Superstrata opens pre-orders on a pair of 3D-printed bicycles Continue Reading →

It’s beginning to be a sign of the times: smaller or younger space companies getting acquired by larger entities. Today, the company being acquired is Pioneer Astronautics, which has been bought by Voyager Space Holdings  in a combined cash and stock deal. Voyager, which bills itself as the “first space-focused holding company,” now has a portfolio that … Continue reading More new space consolidation as Voyager Space Holdings acquires Pioneer Astronautics Continue Reading →

I count myself blessed to have been contributing my weekly Dear Sophie articles to Extra Crunch since the beginning of 2020. The inspiration for the column struck last December after I returned to the Bay Area from speaking at TechCrunch Disrupt. I was doing my hair, and I remember feeling the spark of the idea begin to … Continue reading A pledge to unite international students and tech Continue Reading →

After a heated run, SaaS and cloud stocks dipped sharply during regular trading on Monday. According to the category-tracking Bessemer cloud index, public SaaS and cloud stocks dropped around 6.5% today, a material blow to the value of some of the world’s most highly valued companies, measured by sector-averaged revenue multiples. After recovering all their COVID-19-related … Continue reading SaaS and cloud stocks finally give back ground Continue Reading →

Luckin Coffee has replaced co-founder and (now ex-) chairman Charles Zhengyao Lu, despite his efforts to maintain control over the troubled Beijing-based coffee chain. The company disclosed in an SEC filing on Monday that Jinyi Guo, another co-founder, board member and former acting chief executive of Luckin, has been appointed as its new chairman and chief executive officer. … Continue reading Luckin Coffee replaces chairman Charles Lu Continue Reading →

Huawei reported a 13.1% year-over-year revenue growth in the first half of 2020, even if countries around the world continued to weigh up bans on its equipment and smartphone sales shrink amid the pandemic, the telecom giant said in a brief on Monday. The firm’s revenue reached 454 billion yuan ($64.88 billion) in the period, with its carrier, enterprise, … Continue reading Huawei posts revenue growth in H1 despite sanctions and pandemic Continue Reading →

Nigeria’s e-commerce startup TradeDepot, which connects international brands to small businesses in Africa, has raised $10 million in a new round of funding to expand its business into financial services and credit offerings for retailers. First launched in 2016, TradeDepot has built up a network of 40,000 small businesses in Nigeria and connects them to local distributors … Continue reading TradeDepot adds $10 million to add financial services to its supply chain services for African SMBs Continue Reading →

Which will fly first: NASA’s SLS rocket or SpaceX’s Super Heavy booster? ESA-D. Ducros 236WITH 75 POSTERS PARTICIPATING SHARE ON FACEBOOK SHARE ON TWITTER   This was supposed to be the year of the big rocket. At one point, as many as four large, powerful boosters were slated to take flight this year. Alas, we now know … Continue reading Sadly, none of the big rockets we hoped to see fly in 2020 actually will Continue Reading →

Google doesn’t allow stalking apps in the Play Store but hadn’t yet banned ads. Google is trying to make it a little harder for a determined stalker to spy remotely on their spouse, partner, or ex by prohibiting advertising for stalkerware apps on its services—with one giant loophole. The search giant updated its advertising policy to say … Continue reading Google bans ads for stalkerware apps—with some exceptions Continue Reading →