As it gears up to go public Uber is facing legacy baggage down under: A class action lawsuit has been filed in Australia on behalf of around 6,000 taxi and hire car drivers and license owners, Reuters reported Friday. The suit was filed Friday at the Victoria Supreme Court by personal injury and compensation law…
The emerging business of offering bikes and scooters on demand has not always been very smooth, and today comes one of the latest bumps: TechCrunch has learned and confirmed that Liam O’Connor, an executive hired to help transportation company Lyft build its bike and scooter operations, has left after seven months with the newly-public company.…
Your wireless carrier knows where you are as you read this on your phone — otherwise, it couldn’t connect your phone in the first place. But your wireless carrier also has a memory. It knows where you took your phone in the last hour, the last week, the last month, the last year — and…
Giacomo Bagarella Contributor Giacomo Bagarella works for the Massachusetts Digital Service, where he leads projects to improve the way the state serves constituents. In his spare time, he thinks and writes about the impact of emerging technologies on society and national security. Follow him on Twitter @g_bagarella. When Amazon entered markets like bookselling or groceries,…
WorldCover, a New York and Africa-based climate insurance provider to smallholder farmers, has raised a $6 million Series A round led by MS&AD Ventures. Y-Combinator, Western Technology Investment, and EchoVC also participated in the round. WorldCover’s platform uses satellite imagery, on-ground sensors, mobile phones, and data analytics to create insurance options for farmers whose crops…
It’s time for another SpaceX launch, and though tonight’s (technically early tomorrow morning’s) isn’t as historic as the Falcon Heavy, it’s always impressive to see a Falcon 9 lift off with supplies for the International Space Station. But inclement weather threatens to delay delivery. CRS-17 will be taking two tons of supplies and other items…
Activision Blizzard said it has lined up five franchises for a new, city-based Call of Duty esports league. Atlanta, Dallas, New York, Paris and Toronto will all play host to franchise teams that will compete in a professional league based on what is perhaps Activision Blizzard’s most successful title, the company announced after its earnings…
Unshackled Ventures isn’t like other venture capital funds. The firm invests in immigrant founders and helps them secure visas so they can ditch their corporate job and launch the startup of their dreams. Today, Unshackled is announcing its sophomore fund of $20 million, topping its debut effort by $15.5 million. “The point is to take…
Tesla is raising up to $1.55 billion through the sale of notes and shares, according to a filing made by the EV maker today. The document outlines that Tesla will sell up to $1.35 billion in convertible senior notes. The number could increase further: Tesla is giving underwriters the chance to buy a further $202.5…
Bird and Lime are scooting along, backed by hundreds of millions in venture capital. But there are still plenty of companies hoping to dominate the still-nascent micro mobility market, given the financial opportunity it’s promising. Among them: Bond Mobility, a three-year-old Palo Alto, Calif.- and Zurich, Switzerland-based startup that says its “high-performance” dockless electric bikes…
