by tyler | May 7, 2024 | Tech
Google, it seems, couldn’t wait until I/O next week to show off the latest addition to the Pixel line . For the past several years, the company has used its annual developer conference to showcase an update to its budget line, but exactly a week out from the event, Google just announced the Pixel 8a.
When I asked Google about the timing, they told me, “It is its own device and we want to give it its own moment to shine.” Take that for whatever it’s worth.
The handset actually starts shipping the day of the I/O keynote (May 14), but presale starts today. The device sports the same starting price as its predecessor, at $499. The updates, too, are what we’ve come to expect from these refreshes. At the top of the list is the addition of the Tensor G3 chip. You can read all about that one in October’s Pixel 8 review .
Google has developed a good release cadence, introducing new silicon for flagship devices and rolling it out to its budget line six months later. You could argue that the quick turnaround is blurring the line between the premium and mid-tier devices, but Google has no intention of competing with the Apples and Samsungs of the world on the $1,000+ side of the fence (well, with non-foldables , at least).
The other notable bit here is the addition of Google’s Gemini The generative AI platform can be made the default device assistant when setting up the product. Given the hit or miss nature of these LLM-based systems it’s for the best that Google is keeping it as an opt-in feature for now. The platform can summarize an inbox and help the user take notes, for starters,
One wonders, however, how soon Gemini will supplant Google Assistant outright. More info at I/O, perhaps.
The system will be inheriting some other AI-based tools from the premium line, including Audio Magic Erase, which pretty much does what it says on the tin, reducing incidental noise from a recording. Other features include Magic Eraser, Best Take, Magic Editor, Real Tone and Face Unblur, all aimed at prettying up your photos.
Circle to Search is also now available on the device. Introduced in January, the feature lets users perform a Google search on keywords by manually drawing a circle around them — pretty much what it says on the tin.
Beyond that, the device sports a 6.1-inch display at 1080 x 2,400. The adaptive brightness now peaks out at a very high 2,000 nits. The handset sports a generous 4,492mAh battery, which is rated at 24 hours of life, or upwards of 72 hours, if you really want to squeeze the most out of it with “Extreme Battery Saver” mode.
The 8a features a dual rear-facing camera system, with a 64-megapixel wide and 13-megapixel ultrawide. The base-level system remains 8GB of RAM and 123GB of storage, though Google has added an additional 245GB option. Google also announced that it will be selling the Pixel tablet as a standalone — without the hub — for the first time.
It arrives in a blue “bay” color and a striking green “aloe,” which Google classifies as “limited edition.”
by tyler | May 7, 2024 | Tech
AI is coming for audiobooks, and that is not an entirely bad thing. But it is a cause of concern in the realm of audio titles and the folks who make them today. Audible is making it easy for authors to generate AI-narrated audiobooks, and as in many cases of AI showing up in an established industry, there’s worry that the creative folks are going to get squeezed out by the robots.
The concern is valid. After all, shouldn’t the robots help us do more art, instead of doing the art for us? Isn’t that backwards.
On the other hand, it’s clear that not every book that is written can afford to hire a narrator, an editor, and a team to handle audio publishing. I suspect that the more commercially-viable titles are still going to work with the best narrators. After all, they can afford it. But the middle-tier of narrators and authors might find that AI is just so cheap for audiobook creation that it’s not financially reasonable to pay a human to do it.
In a sense, consumers will decide. If they shun AI-read titles, the market will adapt. But will they? We’ll have to wait and see.
That’s the demand side of the equation. The supply side is already sorted. There are tens of thousands of AI-read titles today on Audible . Let’s see what happens, hit play!
by tyler | May 7, 2024 | Tech
Apple just updated its two high-end tablets: the iPad Air and the iPad Pro . While the entry-level iPad didn’t receive an update, the company lowered its price, too. And of course, yes, the iPad mini is still around.
So we thought it would be a good opportunity to look at the iPad lineup and understand what makes them different. Maybe it’ll help you choose your next iPad if your existing iPad is so old that you can’t get the latest updates for your favorite apps anymore.
Here’s everything Apple just announced at its Let Loose event, including new iPad Pro with M4 chip, iPad Air, Apple Pencil and more
The 10th-generation iPad that is simply called “iPad” wasn’t updated during Tuesday’s Let Loose event. But it’s still a solid entry-level tablet with a 10.9-inch display; the A14 Bionic system-on-a-chip that was originally released for the iPhone 12 lineup; and a USB-C port. It comes in blue, pink, yellow and silver.
Before now, the iPad cost $449; Apple is now lowering the price to $349 for 64GB of storage. Upgrading to 256GB is a tad expensive, as the price jumps to $499. This also means that the ninth-generation iPad is now gone from the lineup.
Image Credits: Apple
Image Credits: Apple
What is the iPad Air? The line between the iPad Air and iPad Pro isn’t as clear as it used to be. But Apple’s SVP, Hardware Engineering tried to define what the iPad Air is. “iPad Air is designed to deliver advanced features pioneered on iPad Pro and make them available and even more affordable price,” he said.
That’s why it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the iPad Air now comes in two screen sizes , 11 and 13 inches. Apple now uses its M2 chip to power the iPad Air and has moved the front-facing camera so that it is now located along the landscape edge of the tablet.
The 11-inch iPad Air starts at $599, and the 13-inch model starts at $799. If you pick a model that supports cellular connectivity or if you’d like to add more storage, it’ll add up pretty quickly.
Image Credits: Apple
Image Credits: Apple
As the name suggests, the iPad Pro packs the best components available right now. And the new iPad Pro isn’t an exception, as it now features an OLED display and a brand new M4 chip .
Essentially, everything is better in the iPad Pro. There are four speakers, a lidar scanner, a new adaptive true-tone flash and a USB-C port that supports Thunderbolt 4. But whether these features are necessary depend on your use cases and the role of your iPad in your computing world.
It’s also an expensive machine: The iPad Pro starts at $999 for the 11-inch model. The 13-inch version costs $1,299. And the iPad Pro doesn’t come with a keyboard or a pencil in the box, so you often end up paying more than the price of a MacBook Air.
Apple didn’t mention the iPad mini at all but it’s still here. With an 8.3-inch display, this device is bigger than a smartphone but smaller than what people typically call an iPad.
It would have been nice to update the chip on Tuesday, but at least the iPad mini remains in the lineup.
Now, this is where it gets a bit complicated: Some accessories work with some iPad models but not with others.
Let’s start with the pencils. All iPads support pencils now. Apple sells a basic $79 USB-C Apple Pencil that works with all models and is the cheapest option. It can magnetically attach to the tablet but you have to use a USB-C cable to charge it every now and then.
Image Credits: Apple
Image Credits: Apple
The entry-level iPad also supports the first-generation Pencil with a dongle (the one that doesn’t magnetically attach to the tablet). But if you don’t have one, you should choose the basic USB-C Apple Pencil.
If you have an iPad mini, you can also buy a $129 second-generation Apple Pencil. What’s nice about the this one is that it supports wireless pairing and charging as well as a double-tap shortcut to change tools.
And if you’re about to buy a brand-new iPad Air or iPad Pro, Apple essentially updated the second-generation Apple Pencil and rebranded it to the Apple Pencil Pro. It still costs $129 but it adds a couple of quality-of-life features, such as the ability to open a tool palette using the pencil.
As for the keyboard, it’s a bit more straightforward as each model has its own Magic Keyboard. The design of the Magic Keyboard Folio for the entry-level iPad isn’t as nice as the keyboard you can get with the iPad Air or iPad Pro — it’s essentially a $249 keyboard cover.
For the iPad Air and iPad Pro, the pricing of the keyboard depends on the size of the iPad. The Magic Keyboard for 11-inch models costs $299, while the Magic Keyboard for 13-inch models cost $349.
Of course, if you don’t plan to type long documents on your iPad, you can just get a Smart Folio to protect the display and use it as a stand. The versatility of the iPad ecosystem makes it more flexible than a laptop.
by tyler | May 7, 2024 | Tech
Meta is encouraging more users to post to its X rival Threads. In its latest experiment, the company is providing an easy toggle for users to cross-post from Instagram to Threads, the company told TechCrunch.
Earlier today, users shared that they saw control for cross-posting on their Instagram accounts. Users could cross-post an individual post to turn on the feature for all of them.
Meta confirmed to TechCrunch that it is running a global test to let users cross-post images from Instagram to Threads. That means you can’t post Reels to Threads automatically. However, given Instagram’s shift to promoting video , Threads might be a good place to promote your photography.
The company said that this is an opt-in experience, and you can turn it off at any point in time. When users cross-post their Instagram posts, the caption will become text for the Thread post, and hashtags will be converted into plain text.
Meta has used its other properties, including Facebook and Instagram, to promote Threads regularly. Last year, it started showing a carousel of suggested posts from Threads on both Instagram and Facebook . Earlier this year, the social media company also started testing cross-posting from Facebook to Threads .
In addition to the cross-posting test, Meta is also running an active creator bonus program on Threads to incentivize accounts with high follower counts to post on social networks. Last month, Threads passed the 150 million monthly active users mark, Mark Zuckerberg noted on the Q1 2024 earnings call .
by tyler | May 7, 2024 | Tech
TikTok is suing the United States government in an effort to block a law that would ban TikTok if its parent company, ByteDance, fails to sell it within a year. The lawsuit, which was filed on Tuesday , argues that the bill violates the U.S. Constitution. TikTok argues that the law violates the U.S. Constitution’s commitment to “both free speech and individual liberty.”
“For the first time in history, Congress has enacted a law that subjects a single, named speech platform to a permanent, nationwide ban, and bars every American from participating in a unique online community with more than 1 billion people worldwide,” the lawsuit reads. “That law — the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (the “Act”) — is unconstitutional.”
The lawsuit comes two weeks after President Biden signed the bill , which included aid for Ukraine and Israel. The bill gives ByteDance until January 19 to sell the app or face a ban, bringing the possibility of a TikTok ban closer to reality than ever before.
TikTok argues that the U.S. government has not offered evidence to support its claims that the app poses risks to national security.
“The statements of congressional committees and individual Members of Congress during the hasty, closed-door legislative process preceding the Act’s enactment confirm that there is at most speculation, not ‘evidence,’ as the First Amendment requires,” the lawsuit reads.
TikTok goes on to say that the law is effectively seeking to ban the app, arguing that it is not possible to sell TikTok within the 270-day timeline it has been given.
“Petitioners have repeatedly explained this to the U.S. government, and sponsors of the Act were aware that divestment is not possible,” the lawsuit states. “There is no question: the Act will force a shutdown of TikTok by January 19, 2025, silencing the 170 million Americans who use the platform to communicate in ways that cannot be replicated elsewhere.”
Even if ByteDance wanted to sell the app, the Chinese government would likely block a sale because it would need to approve the transfer of the TikTok’s algorithms. TikTok goes on to state that a sale would be technologically impossible, as “millions of lines of software code” would need to be moved to a new owner.
The lawsuit follows fours years of allegations from the U.S. government that TikTok’s ties to China pose a national security risk and that it exposes Americans’ sensitive information to the Chinese government. TikTok has denied these allegations and said it has spent $2 billion to protect the data of U.S. users.
Lawmakers have also argued that TikTok has the potential to sway public opinion by deciding what it shows to users in its ‘For You’ feed.
When the U.S. government was seeking to ban TikTok under the Trump administration, TikTok considered selling its U.S. operations to an American company. Potential candidates included Oracle, Microsoft and Walmart, but none of these deals came to fruition. This time around, reports have indicated that ByteDance would prefer to shut down TikTok rather than sell it.
by tyler | May 7, 2024 | Tech
Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech ! This week, we’re looking at Mercury’s latest expansions, wallet-as-a-service startup Ansa’s raise and more!
To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important fintech stories delivered to your inbox every Tuesday at 8 a.m. PT, subscribe here . (New day and time, same awesome newsletter!)
Digital banking startup Mercury is layering software onto its bank accounts, giving its business customers the ability to pay bills, invoice customers and reimburse employees, the company has told TechCrunch exclusively. The additional features put the company in even more direct competition with the likes of Brex and Ramp, two rival fintechs that have for years been fighting for market share in an increasingly crowded space . Mercury says that it has over 200,000 customers sending $4 billion in outgoing payments every month via its platform and that this move is a natural one for the seven-year-old company.
CB Insights took it upon itself to identify 85 potential acquisition targets for Ramp “given its heightened interest in M&A.” Here are a few examples: Greycroft-backed Streamlined, which does accounts receivable (AR) automation and whose $4 million raise TechCrunch covered here ; Oddr, which is focused on invoice-to-cash management for the legal sector; Pactum, which does AI vendor negotiation; and OpStart, a startup valued at $10 million in 2022 that offers “financial operations for startups.” So far Ramp has acquired Cohere , Buyer and Venue .
We first covered Ansa in 2023 when they came out of stealth announcing a $5.4 million raise . Last week, the buzzy fintech shared with TC exclusively that it had raised another $14 million to grow its “wallet-as-a-service” business. We were impressed with the fact that 95.6% of the investors in its Series A round were female and by the company’s traction. Read more here .
Flipping houses is not for the faint of heart, no matter how fun or easy HGTV might make it seem. One startup wants to make the process less complicated by offering a different way to borrow money to fund such a purchase. Backflip offers a service to real estate investors for securing short-term loans. Beyond helping users secure financing, Backflip’s tech also helps investors source, track, comp and evaluate potential investments. Think of it as a cross between Zillow and Shopify. And it just raised $15 million .
Hans Tung, a managing partner at Notable Capital , formerly GGV Capital, has a lot of thoughts on the state of venture capital today. We recently brought him on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast to discuss valuations, why founders need to play the long game and the reason some VC firms are struggling more than others. We also delved deep into the reasons he’s still bullish on fintech, and which sectors in the fintech space have him especially excited. Check out interview excerpts and the actual podcast here.
The inside story of Chime, America’s biggest digital bank
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Marqeta expands Uber Eats partnership
Nayax acquires VMtecnologia, expands in Latin America
Federal prosecutors are examining financial transactions at Block, owner of Cash App and Square
RIA custodian Altruist valued at over $1.5 bln in latest funding round
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