Biotechnology
Remember when DeepMind's AlphaFold cracked the decades-old protein folding problem and walked off with a Nobel Prize? That was just the beginning. Now, the Google-owned AI lab is taking aim at an even tougher challenge: deciphering the 98% of your genome we still barely understand. Meet AlphaGenome, DeepMind’
Finance
Kalshi, a regulated U.S.-based prediction market platform, has secured a significant $185 million funding round led by crypto-centric venture capital firm Paradigm, bringing its post-money valuation to $2 billion. The deal, confirmed by both Kalshi and Paradigm to TechCrunch, marks one of the biggest milestones to date in
Software Development
Google has unveiled a new tool designed to put the power of its Gemini AI models directly into the hands of developers — right from the command line. The company announced the release of Gemini CLI, a locally running, agentic AI tool that brings conversational intelligence to where developers work most:
Healthcare
In a striking show of investor confidence, AI health tech startup Abridge has doubled its valuation to $5.3 billion just four months after its previous funding round. The Pittsburgh-based company has secured a $300 million Series E round, led by Andreessen Horowitz with continued backing from Khosla Ventures, according
Transportation
In a significant step forward for autonomous transportation, Uber customers in Atlanta can now hail a driverless Waymo robotaxi directly through the Uber app. This marks Atlanta as the second U.S. city, after Austin, to host the growing collaboration between Uber and Waymo, two companies that were once rivals
Style & Beauty
Unilever announced Monday, June 23, that it will acquire men’s personal care brand Dr. Squatch, a move that signals the consumer goods giant’s deepening focus on Gen Z consumers and influencer-led marketing. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it is expected to close later this
Energy
In a landmark announcement, New York Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled plans to build the state’s first nuclear power plant in decades—a move that signals the renewed momentum behind nuclear energy in the United States. The proposed facility, which will be located upstate, is expected to generate at least
Legal
Harvey, the fast-growing legal tech startup pioneering AI solutions for the legal industry, has announced a $300 million Series E funding round, bringing its valuation to a staggering $5 billion. The round was co-led by Kleiner Perkins and Coatue, with participation from a powerhouse list of backers including Sequoia, GV,
Tech Insights
Amazon has unveiled a significant investment plan, committing approximately $233 million to bolster its operations in India. Announced on Thursday, the move aims to expand the company's logistics infrastructure, enhance technological capabilities for its delivery network, and further its commitment to employee safety and well-being. The investment forms
Midjourney, the renowned AI image generation startup known for its surreal visual style and Discord-only user base, has officially launched its first AI video generation model, V1. Announced on Wednesday, V1 marks the company’s debut in the fast-evolving world of AI-generated video, joining a competitive field alongside OpenAI’s
In a landmark commitment to bolster domestic semiconductor production, Texas Instruments (TI) has announced plans to invest more than $60 billion to expand its manufacturing footprint across the United States. This investment, described by the company as the “largest investment in foundational semiconductor manufacturing in U.S. history,” will fund
At this year’s Cannes Lions advertising festival, Uber unveiled a bold new move in its growing ad business: an interactive ad format that lets brands pay to give users discounts on their next rides. Dubbed “Ride Offers,” the ad unit makes promotional content more actionable — and personal. The initiative
Amazon-backed Zoox has taken a major step forward in the autonomous vehicle race with the opening of its first dedicated robotaxi production facility in Hayward, California. Announced on Wednesday, the 220,000-square-foot site marks the beginning of Zoox’s move toward full-scale commercial deployment, positioning it as a direct competitor
Applied Intuition, a rising force in autonomous vehicle software, has closed a massive $600 million Series F funding round and tender offer, catapulting its valuation to $15 billion. The company, known for its advanced simulation and data management tools for autonomous systems, continues to cement its position as a cornerstone
Google has officially expanded its Gemini AI model family, signaling a major milestone in its 2025 AI roadmap. After several months of testing and fine-tuning, the powerful Gemini 2.5 Pro model has exited its preview phase and is now generally available for developers. Alongside this launch, Google is introducing
Anysphere, the company behind the popular AI coding assistant Cursor, has unveiled a new $200-per-month subscription tier called Ultra, offering a major upgrade for power users. Announced in a blog post Monday, the Ultra plan provides 20 times more usage of leading AI models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, and
Over the past year, Meta's Threads team has been steadily building toward deeper integration with the fediverse, a decentralized network of interconnected social platforms like Mastodon and Flipboard. Now, in what marks its most significant step yet, Threads is launching a dedicated feed for fediverse content and adding
Digital health startup Sword Health has secured a fresh $40 million in funding at a $4 billion valuation, marking a 33% increase from its $3 billion valuation just a year ago. The round was led by returning backer General Catalyst, with participation from Khosla Ventures, Comcast Ventures, and several other
Rising defense tech startup Mach Industries has raised $100 million in a new funding round, bringing its valuation to $470 million. The announcement follows a period of rapid growth and technological development for the company, which was founded just two years ago by Ethan Thornton, who dropped out of MIT
In a bold move to capture the loyalty of affluent consumers, JPMorgan Chase has unveiled a major overhaul of its flagship Sapphire Reserve credit card — complete with a steep increase in the annual fee and a slate of new perks designed to appeal to high-spending travelers and diners. Starting June
OpenAI has been awarded a $200 million contract by the U.S. Department of Defense to deliver advanced artificial intelligence capabilities for national security, marking a significant new chapter in the company’s government-facing work. Announced on Monday, the one-year agreement is the first contract between OpenAI and the Pentagon
