Ohm’s Quest is a steampunk-inspired cubical device that acts as a sort of escape game console. You can scan an NFC-enabled card on a side of the cube, and it starts a new story with interactive challenges that you should solve as a team. While we don’t cover board games very often on TechCrunch, there…
Hyundai and Kia have finally announced their plans to adopt Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS) ports for their electric vehicles in the U.S. and Canada, joining the swells of automakers that have also promised to do so. The move will give Hyundai and Kia drivers — as well as drivers of Ford, General Motors,…
Stoke Space is flying high. Fresh on the heels of a successful test of its reusable second stage, the four-year-old startup announced today that it closed $100 million in new funding led by Industrious Ventures. This newest round of funding included participation from the University of Michigan, Sparta Group, Long Journey, and other investors. Existing…
“Flexibility” isn’t a word one often applies to the manufacturing process. Changing things up on the assembly line is a resource-intensive activity, but automation and robotics could go a ways toward removing some friction from the process. That’s effectively the thesis statement behind Machina Labs. The Los Angeles-based firm distills things into the simplest language…
Bolt.Earth, an Indian startup that offers charging infrastructure and software solutions for electric vehicles, has raised $20 million in a funding round to expand its presence within the South Asian nation and enter into new markets. The Bengaluru-based startup has raised fresh capital from its existing and new investors, including Union Square Ventures, Prime Venture…
The criminal trial of former cryptocurrency magnate Sam Bankman-Fried completed its second day on Wednesday. The prosecution and defense both gave opening statements, and interviewed the first two witnesses, including a customer of FTX and Bankman-Fried’s former friend and ex-Alameda and FTX employee Adam Yedidia. The prosecution painted Bankman-Fried as someone who knowingly committed fraud…
Patreon is launching new features, a redesigned app and a new brand identity, the company announced on Wednesday. In a blog post, the company explained that the changes are about “giving creators even more,” noting that Patreon is “no longer just a paid membership company.” One of the most notable features updates is the full…
When it comes to visiting new cities, Airbnb changed the game for people who might have previously considered only hotels or guest houses: now, flexible alternatives in private homes, powered by a modern, digital interface for hosts and guests to connect with each other to book a stay, are a significant part of the mix…
The move towards Open Banking payments, especially in the EU, effectively kicked-off the FinTech boom. Open Baking standards meant that FinTech startups could create Wallets and effectively become Banks, or at least “Neo Banks,” in practical day-today-terms. Today, digital wallets are now the leading payment method globally in e-commerce, with a 49% share, according to…
Krafton India has launched a gaming incubator in the South Asian nation as it seeks to expand the local ecosystem and support the domestic talent looking to enter the fast-growing gaming market. Called Krafton India Gaming Incubator (KIGI), the program aims to support six to 10 teams annually, with the total duration ranging from six…
