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Fri-yay Crunch!
We are very excited that Disruption 2023 has a full platform for fintech. And while we’re talking about events…there’s only a few hours left to save $200 on TC Early Stage tickets in two weeks in Boston, so get yer tickets while you can!
On that note, enjoy your weekend! – Christine And came
TechCrunch’s Top 3
- Italy gives chatgpty the boot.: The Italian government has been on lockdown lately. A few days ago, we wrote about the possibility of banning processed meat, and today Italy wants to ban ChatGPT citing data protection concerns. Natasha L The country’s data protection authority wrote that it is opening an investigation into whether OpenAI is violating the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation.
- Groupon got the checkbook: Ingrid Groupon has reportedly lost 99.4% of its value since its IPO and now has a new CEO from the Czech Republic running the business.
- Jio starts the game: Manish Mukesh Ambani, CEO of Indian streaming giant Jio, wrote that the Indian Premier League cricket tournament “recognizes that cricket streaming will not be profitable for many years, but it is a good opportunity to improve Jio’s service delivery strategy.”
Startups and VCs
What do you do when you have a very successful and popular product (marijuana) that is legal in some places but has been a Schedule 1 drug federally since 1970? Well, you cannot rely on any national institutions as your trading partners; came Reports. One of the main areas to look at is in the billing and payment process; Even after recreational cannabis has been legalized in 21 states and decriminalized in another dozen or so, cannabis has largely become a cash business. In a cashless world, that’s a problem for consumers and businesses. Smoakland is currently beta testing a loophole that allows customers to pay by credit card. The secret, it turns out, is crypto.
Need something else to get you through the long dark void of “low tech news” known as the weekend? Don’t worry Fami, we got it
Yes, indeed, the YC summer class is buzzing with AI companies.
Image Credits: Getty Images
A third of the startups in Y Combinator’s latest class “claim to be an AI company or use AI in some way,” reports Rebecca Skutack.
“You can’t blame YC companies for leaning towards AI,” she wrote. “If you see VCs throwing dollars — in a strong fundraising market, without much of a downside — into a technology like AI that you can apply to your own business, why wouldn’t you?”
Three more from the TC+ team:
TechCrunch+ Our membership program helps founders and startup teams stay ahead of the pack. You can register here.. Use code “DC” for 15% off annual subscription!
Big Tech Inc.
Checkout.com has a new president who recently spoke. Mary Ann About being on the US expansion and how you “receive” the comparison with Stripe. Celine Dufetel says this year about the payments industry: “Now in an economic environment that is more uncertain than ever, the impact that CFOs and payments leaders have on top growth and profitability is shrinking. More and more business leaders are realizing the impact of high-performing payment systems in increasing acceptance rates, reducing costly fraud cases, and reducing operational costs.
And we have five more for you:
