Here’s your chance to get into TechCrunch’s AI Pavilion at Disrupt London for free

Defensibility creates the most value for founders
 Some advisers tell founders, “Don’t worry about defensibility. Focus on doing something to delight customers and do it better.” That’s okay. But, if I have a choice, I’d rather start a business where I know if it works, it will be defensible… that I can really protect it from competition. The best way to get true defensibility in the digital world seems to be… Read More

Here’s your shot at free exhibit space at TechCrunch’s Healthtech Pavilion at Disrupt London
 While Europe’s technology ecosystem is growing, there’s sometimes a view that it lags behind the U.S. for HealthTech or Health 2.0, or whatever you want to call it. But that’s basically bullshit. While Europe has been a slow starter, it’s catching up very fast. There are many new EU-based health-tech companies, and a brief analysis of CrunchBase shows that while the U.K. Read More

Indiegogo launches After Dark collection for saucy crowdfunding campaigns
 Indiegogo is going a long way towards making crowdfunding sexy again. Whether you like sticking your private parts in things, or sticking things in your private parts, Indiegogo’s got your back. And your front, for that matter. Read More

What it will take to create inclusive high-tech incubators and accelerators
 The success of high-tech accelerators has ignited the creation of similar models around the country hoping to replicate their accomplishments. But their achievements have not come without criticism. The exclusivity of the high-tech sector in general is reflected in the lack of diverse entrepreneurs being supported by high-tech accelerators and, to a lesser degree, by high-tech incubators. Read More

Apple’s iPhone 7 will be super limited in stores and all jet black and Plus models are sold out
 Apple has issued a statement tonight that is essentially setting expectations for those who hoped they’d be able to walk into an Apple store on Friday and pick themselves up an iPhone. The statement makes it clear that all iPhones will be in short supply for walk-in customers without a reservation. The statement also indicates that Apple’s jet black iPhones and all iPhone 7 plus… Read More

Google launches final release version of Angular 2.0
 After Google launched the first version of its Angular web application framework in 2010, it quickly became one of the hottest web technologies. Since then, the web has changed, though, and when Google announced Angular 2 in 2014, it created quite a stir in the web development community because this new version wasn’t just an update, but instead a complete rewrite that wasn’t… Read More

Crunch Report | Uber self-driving cars begin working in Pittsburgh
Uber starts self-driving car pickups in Pittsburgh, a coalition of people want to get Edward Snowden a presidential pardon, we talk to Startup Battlefield company Wazer, New Yorkers are watching porn on free Wi-Fi kiosks, and Amazon brings back the Echo Dot. All this on Crunch Report. Read More

Boston Dynamics CEO Marc Raibert demos the Spot at Disrupt
 The audience at Disrupt got a surprise visit from Boston Dynamics’ Spot robot. While the company’s YouTube channel is quite popular, it’s even more impressive to see one of Boston Robotics’ robots in action. Boston Dynamics founder and CEO Marc Raibert got interviewed by TechCrunch’s Brian Heater. The two of them spent some time commenting on a video of the… Read More

EU digital copyright reform proposals slammed as regressive
 The European Commission’s proposals to reform the region’s copyright rules, published in draft form today, have been criticized by tech companies and digital rights groups as regressive and a missed opportunity to modernize hopelessly outdated rules. Read More

MegaBots debuts a trailer for its new web series, outlines its giant fighting robot kit
 In shadow of AT&T Park, two Bay Area-based engineers took to the stage at TechCrunch Disrupt to showcase their plans for a new kind of sports league. Dressed like a matching pair of flamboyant American flags, Gui Cavalcanti and Matt Oehrlein debuted a trailer for an upcoming web series following MegaBots’ journey from pipe dream to a Formula 1-inspired robotic fighting league. With… Read More

Timeular’s cute little box makes the hellish task of filling out your time sheets fun
 Anyone who has ever worked with clients will know the pain of tracking your time. Yes, it’s important to know how long you spent so that you can bill correctly, but it is tedious, hellish and horrid — and, added to that, too often left until the last minute when it becomes harder to remember what was done. Enter Timeular and its pretty little eight-sided box which makes… Read More

And the winner of Startup Battlefield at Disrupt SF 2016 is… Mobalytics
 Startups participating in the Startup Battlefield have all been hand-picked to participate in our highly competitive startup competition. They all presented in front of multiple groups of VCs and tech leaders serving as judges to win $50,000 and the coveted Disrupt Cup. After hours of deliberations, TechCrunch editors pored over the judges’ notes and narrowed the list down to six… Read More

Shervin Pishevar: the first Hyperloop will likely be built overseas
 Shervin Pishevar, well-known venture capitalist and co-founder in the two-year-old L.A.-based futuristic transportation company Hyperloop One came to TechCrunch Disrupt today to chat about shooting people and things across the world faster than the speed of sound. But just how soon will we see that happen? Pishevar says his team is “full steam ahead” to get us there by 2021 and… Read More

The future of human computer interaction will be multimodal
 We have been using the computer mouse for decades to interact with our technology. Touchscreens brought us a new way to input commands to our gadgets, but they rely on the same fundamental idea of the click. Even the new 3D touch on the iPhone 7 is just an incredibly sophisticated way of using the hand to answer a yes or no question. Both Michael Buckwald, CEO of Leap Motion and Jim Marggraff,… Read More

Brew it (cider) yourself with Alchema
 Things are starting to get a bit crowded in the world of automated home brewing, with startups like PicoBrew, Brewie and BrewBot all more or less vying for the same small sliver of space. And while these machines have raked in their share of dough through crowdfunding efforts, it seems pretty likely that actual retail interest will be enough to maintain all comers. Alchema, on the other hand,… Read More

Former GV CEO Bill Maris is reportedly raising up to $500M for his own fund
 Looks like that was fast.  According to a report published this afternoon by CNBC, former Google GV CEO Bill Maris is talking with investors about raising his own fund, with “preliminary plans” to raise between $350 million and $500 million. We haven’t been able to confirm the report just yet; we hope to update this post shortly. Maris founded GV, formerly known as… Read More

Anker launches sister brand for home automation
 Smartphone accessory brand Anker is mostly known for its battery packs, chargers and other popular gizmos for gadget fans. In addition to its tech-on-the-go brand, it today announces the launch of Eufy, a new brand for a line of products aimed to make your home life a bit more high-tech. One of the company’s inaugural products is RoboVac 20, a curiously named intelligent light switch. Read More

Tuurnt connects you with friends with some unique social tools
 Fabrice Mishiki wanted to create a social media tool to help connect influencers, fans, and friends together in a way that hadn’t been done before. He created Tuurnt. The app starts with your traditional social sharing system. You take videos or photos and post them. Your friends can reply with their own videos and, if you get enough responses, the video stays up and popular for longer.… Read More

MOTI wants to help build positive habits with a little glowing robot
 It can take a lot to build a positive habit — whether that’s stretching every morning, drinking enough water or remembering to go on a run. Kayla Matheus and Laura Day hope to make that a little easier with a small robot that sits on your table or desk called MOTI, which is currently running a Kickstarter campaign. But how would that help? Basically, the duo want to try to… Read More

Sapphire Ventures has $1 billion in fresh funding to invest
 Sapphire Ventures, a Palo Alto, Ca.-based venture firm funded solely by the German software giant SAP, has secured a whopping $1 billion to invest across two new funds: a $700 million growth fund, and a $300 million early-stage tech fund. The capital places the group into a ever-growing circle of venture groups that have raised north of a billion dollars in 2016, including Founders Fund… Read More

Estimote announces the Mirror, a dongle that turns any TV into a smart beacon system
 Imagine walking into a store, picking up a pair of shoes, and seeing specs for the kicks appear on a TV next to the display. Or imagine standing in front of an airport departures screen and seeing your flight appear and then a map displaying the best route to your gate. These use cases were supposed to be the killer app for beacons and, finally, these dreams are being realized. The Mirror… Read More

Airbnb tests outsourcing management to Superhosts to grow inventory and loyalty
 As Airbnb, the $30 billion private accommodation renting portal, continues to mature and very slowly inch its way to an IPO, it is adding more ways to bring in more properties and hosts to its platform. TechCrunch has learned that Airbnb is working on a new service under the name “Experienced Hosts,” where it connects would-be hosts (those who have homes or space in their… Read More

Smart lock Amadas to cancel Kickstarter campaign
 Despite reaching its funding goal, Amadas will cancel its Kickstarter campaign on Monday. The campaign wasn’t as clear as the company hoped, the company’s CEO tells me. The challenge is that the backers and the company had some misunderstandings about the features of the product. The campaign might make a return to the platform early next year.Read More

Cruise has around 30 self-driving test cars on roads right now
 Cruise’s Kyle Vogt was on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2016, and the CEO of the self-driving car startup that GM acquired earlier this year shared some updates about the company’s progress under its new owner. Vogt said that access to GM’s considerable resources has helped it accelerate its efforts. GM previously revealed that it was testing cars on roads in San Francisco… Read More

Facebook denies it’s a media company despite censorship decisions
 Facebook makes value judgements about what can appear in News Feed and what’s censored, but insists its a tech company not a media editor. At TechCrunch Disrupt SF, writer Josh Constine sat down with Adam Mosseri, a VP at Facebook and head of News Feed, to hear more about how policies control what you see. The talk started with Constine asking Mosseri much content people consume daily… Read More

Twitch co-founder discusses the site’s efforts to move beyond live gaming content
 Twitch’s co-founder wants the site to reach beyond gaming as it seeks to capture the market on all live-streamed online media. Onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt SF, Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear discussed the future of non-gaming content on the world’s most populous online e-sports arena. When Amazon bought Twitch for $1 billion back in June of 2014, no one really understood… Read More

Cruise founder Kyle Vogt on why he joined forces with GM
 General Motors snapped up Silicon Valley-based Cruise Automation for more than $1 billion earlier this year with plans to plant its self-driving tech inside its own car brands. It was a fine move for GM, which has been aligning itself with several automotive ventures over the past year — including a partnership with Lyft, acquiring assets from the now defunct rideshare competitor Sidecar… Read More

GitHub gets built-in project management tools and support for formal reviews
 GitHub is hosting its Universe developer conference in San Francisco today. Unsurprisingly, the company used this event to announce a number of new features for its Git-based code hosting service. The company calls it its “biggest update to the platform yet,” though how important these changes really are probably depends on how you use GitHub. If you’re working on a team,… Read More

How Apoorva Mehta hopes to build an Instacart empire with a promoted ad business
 Instacart is one of the most well-known companies in what can be an extremely difficult on-demand delivery economy. It’s known for being one of the pioneers of a new age of online grocery delivery, especially in light of the previous failure of companies like Webvan, but it’s going to have a long uphill battle to profitability and sustainability. Instacart CEO Apoorva Mehta,… Read More

Facebook to roll out tech for combating fake stories in its Trending topics
 Following the controversial firing of the editorial team who managed the Trending Topics that appear next to Facebook’s News Feed, the company is now actively working on technology that will help prevent fake news stories from showing up in the Trending section. Similar systems have been rolled out to News Feed in recent months, and now that same technology is making its way to… Read More

NYC public internet kiosk tablets have disabled, because people obviously used them for porn
 For a brief moment, the sleaze and smut of old school sleaze and smut returned to the streets of Manhattan, albeit in a decidedly 21st century form. Since launching earlier this year to much fanfare by New York mayo Bill de Blasio, the hundreds of Internet kiosks designed to replace the city’s pay phones have been a source of much handwringing among city officials, particularly along… Read More

Vinli tops the car apps market, adds Meineke and Cox for distribution
 Connected car startup Vinli has accumulated a lot of traction since it started shipping 10 months ago, following a launch at TechCrunch Disrupt in 2014. The company began by offering a hardware dongle for vehicle diagnostic OBD-II ports, but has since expanded to focus on its software platform, which makes it possible or app makers to target their products to connected vehicles. Now,… Read More

Stilla is a ridiculously simple security system
 $29 will get you a Stilla if you act fast. The startup’s simple security system hit Indiegogo about a week ago, and it’s already managed to pull in around $44k, courtesy of more than 600 backers. The little pebble-shaped device’s strongest selling point is its simplicity. It’s got an accelerometer, a small speaker (or will in its final version, at least), a Bluetooth…Read More

Don’t break regulation — get a policy strategy now, startups told
 The days of startups being able to hit the ignition and, Uber-like, accelerate away from the law are done. The regulation disruption party is over. That was the loud-and-clear message coming out of a panel discussion grappling with the intersection of red tape and entrepreneurship here at TechCrunch Disrupt SF. Read More

NYC’s transit authority urges people to stop using the Galaxy Note 7 on the subway and buses
 New York City’s transit authority is understandably jumpy about the Galaxy Note 7. A week or so after the FAA issued a strongly worded warning asking travelers not to check or fly with Samsung’s new phablet, the MTA is following suit. The organization hasn’t officially banned the device, but it has issued the following warning over social media this week: MTA customers… Read More

African technology training program Andela to invest in its graduates’ startups
 Andela, a company working to bring the top 1% of African tech talent to engineering teams in need of capable, skilled developers, will eventually invest in the startups from those who complete its four-year program. According to Andela co-founder and COO Christina Sass, speaking on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt SF, the company has a broader agenda beyond simply connecting businesses with… Read More

U-Gym massages you during exercise
 I’m a big fan of massages, so I stopped dead in my tracks when I came across a company in the TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2016 Startup Alley earlier today. Taiwan-based U-Gym is a deep layer muscle massager that you can wear while exercising. U-Gym uses medium-frequency electrotherapy to stimulate your muscles, nerves and meridians. The company says it can help with muscle stiffness and… Read More

Amazon’s connected speaker Echo Dot returns, is now only $50
 We already knew it was coming – thanks to an accidental tweet Amazon posted earlier this week – but now it’s official: Amazon’s connected speaker Echo Dot is back in stock and at a lower price point of $49.99. The Alexa-powered device offers many of the same features that you’ll find in its larger counterpart, the Amazon Echo, including access to… Read More

Houzz now uses deep learning to help you find and buy products in its photos
 Thanks to its vast repository of beautiful photos, home remodeling platform Houzz can easily give you a major case of home envy. But if you want to bring your home up to the standard of those homes, Houzz has long allowed you to buy products you see in those photos. Now the company is making it even easier to buy even more products. The service now uses a new deep learning-based system that… Read More

Activists launch campaign asking President Obama to pardon Edward Snowden
 Activists and lawyers from a host of human rights organizations launched a campaign today asking President Obama to issue a pardon to whistleblower Edward Snowden before Obama leaves office in January. The coalition includes the American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other groups. Snowden is charged with espionage for leaking internal National… Read More

Muzik’s new headphones sport Spotify integration and a bunch of celebrity endorsements
 There’s probably a law against launching a new headphone line without the proper celebrity endorsement. Right out of the gate, Muzik’s got ‘em in spades. The hardware startup is launching its first pair – the fittingly titled One – and has already lined up a ton of endorsements, including athletes like Chris Paul and Elena Delle Donne. In fact, here’s a… Read More

Design platform Canva raises $15 million more, doubles valuation to $345 million
 Canva, a design platform for web and mobile that gives anyone the ability to make professional graphics, without needing an advanced skill set, today announced a new infusion of $15 million in funding and a doubling of its valuation in 12 months. Previously valued at $165 million, the added capital brings Canva’s valuation up to $345 million, the company says. Canva closed on its Series… Read More

Ride along with us in Uber’s self-driving car
 Uber is now dispatching self-driving cars to a select group of users in Pittsburgh, and invited us along for the ride. I hailed a car from Uber’s Advanced Technologies Campus Tuesday and took a 45-minute ride through the city’s downtown, eastern and northern neighborhoods. I watched as the wheel turned itself, carefully maneuvering us through crowded streets and around other cars… Read More

Luma nabs another $7 million in Series A funding from Andreessen Horowitz and GV
 Luma, an Atlanta-based company that makes a sleek router with a wide variety of bells and whistles, has added $7 million to a previously closed Series A round. The capital comes from Andreessen Horowitz and GV and adds to an initial, $12.5 million in Series A funding co-led by Accel Partners and Amazon, with participation from Felicis Ventures. Seemingly, investors are trying to get a… Read More

Watch the last day of Disrupt SF live right here!
 The final day of Disrupt is upon us. Which means that I don’t have the energy for enthusiasm. That said, today’s lineup is absolutely killer. Alongside some amazing speakers, including Twitch’s Emmett Shear, Facebook’s Adam Mosseri, and Instacart’s Apoorva Mehta, we’re also heading into the Finals of the Battlefield. Finalists include BlazingDB, Carbon… Read More

LeEco picks up an English language film production company
 In its press material, LeEco refers to as a “global internet company,” a phrase that doesn’t really mean that much on the face of it – but when you’re LeEco, it’s probably best to be purposely vague. The Chinese technology firm’s ultimate goal appears to be an everything company. The brand, formerly known as LeTV, is probably best known for its… Read More

Frame.io raises a $10M Series A with Jared Leto and Kevin Spacey as investors
 Cloud-based collaboration tool Frame.io has raised $10M in Series A funding led by Accel, with participation from SignalFire, FirstMark Capital, and Shasta Ventures. Actor Jared Leto, who was a seed investor in the company, has also invested in the Series A as well as actor Kevin Spacey. Frame.io is a collaboration tool for video creators and compares themselves to a InVision or Github… Read More

Naspers’ PayU buys Citrus Pay for $130M in cash to expand in India
 Hundreds of millions of dollars of investment have been put into commerce startups in the fast-growing market of India, from marketplaces like Flipkart and Snapdeal through to payment startups like PayTM. Now one of the more interesting of these has been acquired. PayU, an online payments company with a focus on developing markets that is owned by South Africa’s Naspers, has… Read More

Velodyne adds a high-res version of its LiDAR sensor for autonomous driving
 The company that both Ford and Baidu are betting $150 million on in autonomous driving hardware has a new version of its LiDAR sensor. The new Puck Hi-Res has a name that reflects both is shape and what distinguishes it form the original puck – higher resolution LiDAR imaging that helps it offer up the “most detailed 3D views possible from LiDAR,” according to the… Read More

Google introduces new app and video ad capabilities
 Google is announcing a couple of upgrades to its ad capabilities today as part of the DMEXCO digital media conference in Germany. First up are its Universal App Campaigns, where developers can promote their apps across search, display, Google Play and YouTube advertising. Google says these campaigns have resulted in more than 3 billion app downloads, but earlier this year, it also said… Read More