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Perplexity strikes multi-year licensing deal with Getty Images
TechCrunch· 2025-10-31 15:46
Core Insights - Perplexity has signed a multi-year licensing deal with Getty Images, allowing it to display Getty's images in its AI-powered search tools, marking a shift towards formal content partnerships [1][2] - The agreement is a response to previous allegations of content scraping and plagiarism faced by Perplexity, legitimizing its prior use of Getty's stock photos [3][4] - The deal aims to enhance attribution and accuracy in AI-generated content, addressing copyright concerns and improving user experience [5][6] Company Developments - Perplexity and Getty have collaborated for over a year, with Getty previously involved in Perplexity's Publishers' Program, which shares ad revenue with publishers [2] - The new agreement is not a traditional lump sum licensing deal, as Perplexity does not train its own foundational models [2] - Perplexity's emphasis on proper attribution is part of its strategy to defend against copyright accusations, arguing that its use of publisher content constitutes "fair use" [6] Legal Context - Perplexity faced plagiarism accusations from various news organizations, including a notable case involving a Wall Street Journal article [3] - Reddit has also sued Perplexity for alleged unlawful scraping of user content, highlighting ongoing legal challenges for the company [5] - The Getty deal is expected to help Perplexity provide better image displays and proper credits, potentially mitigating some legal risks [5][6]
Tim Cook says Apple is open to M&A on the AI front
TechCrunch· 2025-10-31 15:17
Core Insights - Apple CEO Tim Cook indicated the company remains open to acquisitions and partnerships to enhance its AI capabilities, with a focus on integrating AI into its products and services [1][2] - The next-generation AI-powered Siri is on track for a 2026 launch, with significant progress reported [1][3] - Apple is pursuing a three-pronged approach to AI development, involving in-house foundation models, partnerships with third-party LLM providers, and potential acquisitions [2][3] Company Developments - Apple is actively monitoring the market for M&A opportunities that could advance its AI roadmap, with Cook emphasizing the company's openness to pursuing such opportunities [2] - The company is preparing to announce additional AI partnerships, similar to its collaboration with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into Siri and Apple Intelligence [2][3] - Apple is utilizing its Private Cloud Compute technology for various Siri queries and is expanding its infrastructure to support AI processing [3] Infrastructure and Market Impact - A new manufacturing plant in Houston has begun producing servers for Apple Intelligence, with plans for ramping up production for data centers [4] - Cook noted that AI influences consumer decision-making when selecting smartphones, expressing optimism about its growing importance in the market [4]
Luminar is cutting jobs, losing its CFO, and warning of a cash shortage
TechCrunch· 2025-10-31 15:00
Core Points - Luminar warns shareholders of potential cash depletion by early 2026 and announces a 25% workforce reduction to mitigate financial losses [1] - The company has $72 million in cash and marketable securities as of October 24, with a current burn rate indicating possible insolvency by early next year without additional fundraising [5] - Luminar has skipped required quarterly interest payments on certain loans due October 15, with lenders granting an extension until November 6 [6] Management Changes - Chief Financial Officer Thomas Fennimore will step down on November 13 to pursue other career opportunities, with no reported disagreements regarding finances or auditors [2] Company Performance - Luminar has faced challenges due to reduced lidar sensor sales to Volvo, leading to lower selling prices that do not cover production costs [4] - The company expects to report approximately $18 million in revenue and has a debt of $429 million in its upcoming third-quarter financial results [6] Leadership and Ownership - Founder Austin Russell, who was replaced as CEO in May due to an ethics inquiry, is currently attempting to buy the company, with some board members supporting this move [3]
Nvidia expands AI ties with Hyundai, Samsung, SK, Naver
TechCrunch· 2025-10-31 13:29
Core Insights - Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang is visiting South Korea to strengthen partnerships with major tech companies and enhance AI infrastructure [1][2] - South Korea will acquire over 260,000 Nvidia GPUs to support AI initiatives, with significant allocations for public projects and major corporations [3] - Collaborations with Samsung, Hyundai, SK, and Naver focus on advancing AI technologies across various sectors, including manufacturing and telecommunications [4][10][12][13] Nvidia and South Korea's AI Infrastructure - Nvidia and the South Korean government announced an expanded partnership to enhance the country's AI capabilities [1] - The partnership includes securing 50,000 GPUs for public initiatives and over 200,000 GPUs for private companies [3] Collaborations with Major Korean Tech Companies - Samsung and Nvidia are developing an AI Megafactory to integrate AI into semiconductor and mobile device manufacturing [4] - Hyundai and Nvidia are focusing on autonomous mobility and smart factories, utilizing 50,000 Blackwell GPUs for AI model training [10][11] - SK Group is partnering with Nvidia to create Asia's first enterprise-led manufacturing AI cloud [12] - Naver is collaborating with Nvidia to develop a "Physical AI" platform for various industries [13][14] Broader Industry Trends - The partnerships illustrate a trend of integrating AI with hardware across industries, shaping the future of intelligent systems [15] - Nvidia's recent collaborations with various companies and government entities aim to address concerns about an AI bubble and have positively impacted its market capitalization [16]
Navan IPO tumbles 20% after historic debut under SEC shutdown workaround
TechCrunch· 2025-10-30 21:41
Core Insights - Navan, a corporate travel and expense platform, experienced a 20% decline on its first day of trading on Nasdaq, resulting in a valuation of approximately $4.7 billion from its IPO price of $25 [1] - The company utilized a new SEC rule allowing public listings during a government shutdown, which enabled automatic approval for its IPO documents after 20 days of submission [2][3] - Navan's decision to proceed with the IPO was influenced by the prior review of its registration statements by SEC staff before the government shutdown [3] Company Background - Navan, formerly known as TripActions, had been preparing for its IPO for several years, initially filing confidential paperwork in 2022 and aiming for a $12 billion valuation in early 2023 [7] - The company was last valued at $9.2 billion after raising $154 million in a Series G round in October 2022 [7] - Major customers include Shopify, Zoom, Wayfair, OpenAI, and Thomson Reuters, with its AI-powered assistant, Ava, managing about 50% of customer interactions related to travel bookings [8] Financial Performance - Over the last 12 months, Navan generated revenue of $613 million, reflecting a 32% increase, while incurring losses of $188 million [9] - The company's largest venture capital backers prior to the IPO included Lightspeed (24.8% stake), Oren Zeev (18.6% stake), Andreessen Horowitz (12.6% stake), and Greenoaks (7.1%) [10]
Nvidia is reportedly investing up to $1 billion in Poolside
TechCrunch· 2025-10-30 21:10
Core Viewpoint - Nvidia is planning to invest between $500 million and $1 billion in AI software development platform Poolside, as part of a $2 billion funding round at a $12 billion valuation [1][2]. Group 1: Investment Details - Nvidia's potential investment in Poolside could increase to $1 billion if the company successfully completes the remaining funding round [2]. - This investment follows Nvidia's previous backing of Poolside during its $500 million Series B round in October 2024 [2]. Group 2: Nvidia's Broader Investment Strategy - Nvidia has been actively investing in various AI startups and is expanding its portfolio across different sectors [3]. - Recent investments include a $500 million exploration into U.K.-based self-driving company Wayve and a $5 billion stake in Intel for future chip collaboration [3].
Box CEO Aaron Levie on how AI is changing the enterprise SaaS landscape
TechCrunch· 2025-10-29 18:45
Core Insights - The future of enterprise software is expected to be a hybrid model combining SaaS and AI agents, rather than AI agents replacing SaaS companies [1][3] - The integration of AI agents into enterprise software will necessitate a shift in business models from "per-seat" to consumption and volume-oriented use cases [5] Group 1: Business Model Changes - The traditional "per-seat" business model will become obsolete as the number of AI agents is projected to be 100 to 1,000 times greater than the number of human users [4] - Companies will need to adapt their sales strategies to accommodate the rise of AI agents, focusing on consumption-based models [5] Group 2: Opportunities for Startups - There is a significant market opportunity for startups that are designed for an agent-first approach, as they can create new processes without the burden of existing business models [5] - The current technological shift presents a unique window for new companies to emerge in the enterprise space, as the landscape is changing dramatically [6]
Microsoft Azure is down, affecting 365, Xbox, Minecraft, and others
TechCrunch· 2025-10-29 18:07
Core Points - Microsoft Azure is experiencing a significant outage that began around 12 p.m. ET, with the company acknowledging the issue on its service status page [1] - The outage is suspected to be triggered by an inadvertent configuration change, with no indication from Microsoft on when services will be restored [1] - Multiple Microsoft services, including Microsoft 365, Xbox, and Minecraft, are affected, along with websites from other businesses like Costco and Starbucks [2] - This outage occurs just hours before Microsoft is set to announce its earnings results, and follows a recent outage experienced by Amazon AWS that impacted various websites and services [2]
GM cuts thousands of EV and battery factory workers
TechCrunch· 2025-10-29 18:05
Group 1 - General Motors is laying off thousands of workers across multiple electric vehicle and battery plants in the U.S. [1] - Approximately 1,200 employees at the EV factory in Detroit, Michigan are being placed on "indefinite layoff" [2] - Further cuts and temporary layoffs are occurring at GM's Ultium Cells battery factories in Ohio and Tennessee, with plans to idle these factories starting January 5 and resume production in mid-2026 [2] Group 2 - The job cuts follow GM's announcement of layoffs to some of its white-collar workforce and a $1.6 billion hit as it reworks its electric vehicle plans [3] - GM has recently ended its BrightDrop commercial electric van program, indicating a shift in strategy [3] - The company, along with many rivals, is reducing its push for EVs in the U.S. due to the loss of the federal tax credit and relaxed regulatory restrictions on internal combustion vehicles [3]
Google to bring shuttered nuclear power plant back from the dead
TechCrunch· 2025-10-29 17:23
Core Insights - Google is collaborating with NextEra Energy to revive the Duane Arnold Energy Center nuclear power plant in Iowa, which was closed in 2020 [1][2] - The partnership aims to enhance Google's zero-carbon energy sources for its data centers, with Google agreeing to purchase a majority of the plant's power for 25 years [3][4] Company Developments - NextEra Energy has been seeking a partner for the past year to restart the Duane Arnold reactor, which was originally designed to generate 601 megawatts of electricity, with plans to add an additional 14 megawatts upon renovation [2][3] - The Duane Arnold Energy Center was shut down due to damage from a summer derecho, affecting its secondary containment system [2] Industry Trends - There is a growing trend of reviving nuclear power plants as tech companies and data center developers look for reliable energy sources amid increasing electricity demand [4] - Restarting existing reactors is viewed as a quicker alternative to building new nuclear facilities, which can take years to develop, while companies are also exploring solar and battery solutions for faster deployment [8]