Amazon backs programmable optics startup Lumotive

Programmable optics startup Lumotive has added a few more strategic backers to its recent Series B round. Redmond, Washington-based Lumotive reopened its recent Series B funding round to bring in Amazon, through its Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund, and ITHCA Group, the technology investment arm of Oman’s sovereign wealth fund, as investors. These fresh funds bring … Read more

OpenAI and Google outdo the mathletes, but not each other

AI models from OpenAI and Google DeepMind achieved gold medal scores in the 2025 International Math Olympiad (IMO), one of the world’s oldest and most challenging high school level math competitions, the companies independently announced in recent days. The result underscores just how fast AI systems are advancing, and yet, how evenly matched Google and … Read more

Figma’s Dylan Field will cash out about $60M in IPO, with Index, Kleiner, Greylock, Sequoia all selling, too

When Figma announced its initial hoped-for price range on Monday ($25-$28), it also revealed an unusual decision for its highly anticipated IPO.  It will allow existing shareholders to sell more shares than the company plans to sell, by a high ratio. The company plans to offer about 12.5 million shares. Yet existing shareholders will be … Read more

Why Cartken pivoted its focus from last-mile delivery to industrial robots

Autonomous robotics startup Cartken, known for its four-wheeled robots that deliver food on college campuses and through Tokyo’s bustling streets, has found a new area of focus: industrials.  Cartken co-founder and CEO Christian Bersch told TechCrunch that applying its delivery robots to industrial settings was always in the back of his mind as they built … Read more

Astronomer CEO resigns following Coldplay concert scandal

Andy Byron, the startup executive at the center of an extraordinary social media furor, has resigned as CEO of data operations startup Astronomer.  Byron, who is married, was captured on a Coldplay concert “kiss cam” with his arms around the company’s chief people officer Kristin Cabot. After Byron and Cabot quickly tried to hide from … Read more