“So many folks in D.C. don’t actually know what it is,” he remarked.
When Graham put out a call for startup applications, a dozen startups got into YC’s debut class.
Lowe didn’t confirm where that was a strategy on Tan’s part, but he praised Tan for his warmness and his dedication.
After educating the D.C. market, YC aims to leverage its influence, particularly in areas like competition policy.
And if we don’t do that, then it’s pretty easy to see how this plays out,” Lowe said.
When generative AI tools started making waves in late 2022 after the launch of ChatGPT, the finance industry was one of the first to recognize these tools’ potential for speeding up the data-gathering and research process.
MIT alumni Jacob Chanyeol Choi and Subeen Pang founded Linq after they won the Samsung Open Collaboration in 2023, an accelerator-like program hosted by Samsung Financial Network.
Choi told TechCrunch that win spurred him to build large language models (LLMs) for enterprises, particularly the financial sector.
“We knew the potential for a tool that could seamlessly integrate with a company’s data ecosystem, which led to the birth of Linq,” Choi said.
In addition to its B2B service for enterprise clients, the startup also plans to build B2C tools for AI equity research.
Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech!
This week, we’re looking at Rippling’s controversial decision to ban some former employees from selling their stock, Carta’s massive valuation drop, a GenZ-focused fintech raise, and more!
But there is one big exception: It has banned former employees who work for a handful of competitors from selling their stock.
What else we’re writingIn early 2022, the fintech startup Bloom was accepted into Y Combinator as the first-ever startup from Sudan to participate in the famed accelerator.
In an unusual move, Capital One is teaming up with payment giants (and rivals) Stripe and Amsterdam-based Adyen to offer a free product aimed at fraud reduction, the financial services giant told TechCrunch in an exclusive interview.
Crunchbase is expanding the scope of its tagging options in Europe to start tracking how much venture capital funding goes to minority founders on the continent.
Diversity Spotlight is a feature on Crunchbase that lets companies add tags to their profiles to label themselves.
Crunchbase is now making this feature available in Europe.
Crunchbase initially launched the Diversity Spotlight feature in 2020, and last year expanded it to add an LGBTQ+ tag.
Women globally, meanwhile, typically receive less than 2% of venture capital funding across the world.
Mistral AI has closed its much rumored Series B funding round with General Catalyst leading the round.
The company has secured €600 million (around $640 million at today’s exchange rate) in a mix of equity and debt.
As a reminder, Mistral AI is a relatively new entrant in the artificial intelligence space.
It also has distribution partnerships with cloud providers, such as Microsoft Azure — Microsoft is also a minor shareholder in Mistral AI.
According to the Financial Times, Mistral AI raised €468 million in equity and €132 million in debt (around $500 million and $140 million respectively).
When Slack CEO Denise Dresser was handed the reins last November, she was the third CEO in less than a year at the enterprise communications company.
The SaaS Stage lineup, including our discussion with Denise Dresser, is taking place on Oct 29th – learn more about the event here.
About TechCrunch Disrupt 2024TechCrunch Disrupt is where you’ll find innovation for every stage of your startup journey.
Over 10,000 startup leaders will be attending this year’s event on October 28-30 in San Francisco.
We can’t wait to hear from Denise Dresser and more SaaS leaders at this year’s show.
It’s time to dig deep and take advantage of an unparalleled opportunity at TechCrunch Disrupt 2024 — the Startup Battlefield 200.
Applications to Startup Battlefield 200 close todayThe Startup Battlefield 200 experience isn’t just good — it’s great.
Startup Battlefield 200 perks and benefitsWhat’s in it for you?
You don’t have much time left — apply to Startup Battlefield 200 here TODAY by 11:59 p.m. PDT!
Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at TechCrunch Disrupt 2024?
When you’re looking for a startup idea that could slow climate change, you might become an expert at home energy assessments.
Instead, the startup has put together a small team of engineers to create its own AI model specialized in home energy assessments using machine learning.
The company uses open data, such as satellite images, as well as its own training data set with millions of photos and energy assessments.
In the company’s first tests, its home energy assessments have been accurate within 5% of old-fashioned assessments.
The startup has now raised €4.7 million ($5.1 million at today’s exchange rate) with Racine² leading the round and a non-dilutive investment from Bpifrance.
You’re running out of time to join the Startup Battlefield 200, our curated showcase of top startups from around the world and across multiple industries.
This elite cohort — 200 companies strong — absolutely owns (and slays) the exhibition floor at TechCrunch Disrupt.
Tomorrow is the last day to apply to Startup Battlefield 200We’re accepting applications from early-stage startups until tomorrow, June 10 at 11:59 p.m. PDT.
A shot at $100,000: TechCrunch editors will select 20 startups from the SB 200 to be Startup Battlefield finalists.
Apply to the Startup Battlefield 200 right now.
Dogs are the most popular pet in the U.S.: 65.1 million households have one, according to the American Pet Products Association.
Sonya Petcavich, the founder of cat-sitting app Meowtel, thinks that cats, and cat people, deserve more.
“Rover had been around for a few years, and Wag was picking up steam, but they were so dog focused.
Meowtel has made it to this point raising just under $1 million in venture capital.
ImpriMed, a dog oncology startup, raised $23 million in November, and Fi, a smart dog collar, has raised more than $40 million in venture capital.
