January 16, 2025
Despite VCs investing $75B in Q4 , it’s still hard for startups to raise money, data proves
After two years of relatively muted investment activity, it seems that VCs are starting to pour capital into startups at pandemic-era levels once again. But a closer look shows that they aren’t really. In the fourth quarter of last year, investors funneled $74.6 billion into US startups, a substantial increase from the average of $42…
David Lynch has died
Photo by Amy T. Zielinski/Getty Images David Lynch, the director behind Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive, and other unsettling works, has died, his family confirmed in a post on his official Facebook page. He was 78 years old. The post announcing his passing didn’t list a cause of death. But last August, Lynch revealed…
CFPB sued for trying to regulate digital payment apps more like banks
Illustration: Hugo Herrera / The Verge Two major tech trade groups are challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) effort to treat payment apps and digital wallets like banks. In a lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, DC, NetChoice and TechNet claim that the CFPB’s digital payment regulation, announced on November 21st, 2024, is…
Will RedNote get banned in the US?
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge I’m not the first to note the irony of TikTok users flooding RedNote this week. The TikTok divest-or-ban rule was supposed to drive Americans away from a foreign-owned social network that was subject to influence or data harvesting by the Chinese government. Instead, it pushed them onto a different…
Apple’s most affordable iPad has an AI problem
Apple’s 10th-gen iPad is (regular $349), especially when you consider that the next comparable display size in the lineup starts at $600. iPad 10 has a full-screen design, fun colors, Touch ID, USB-C, and impressive cameras. However, there’s one missing feature that should make customers carefully consider purchasing this model. more…
Apple Continues Promoting Severance Ahead of Season 2 Premiere
The second season of hit television show Severance is set to be available to stream starting tomorrow, and Apple is continuing to promote the show. The company’s main Apple.com website now has a section dedicated to Lumon Industries, the fictional business that “innies” work for in Severance. On Tuesday, several key Severance actors attended a…
Price drop: Get a barely used 2017 MacBook Air for less than $230
Need a laptop for less? This deal on a refurbished MacBook Air gets you or a family member into the Apple ecosystem for just $229.97. (via Cult of Mac – Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)
This AI video generator can make a banana typing look realistic – and might challenge Sora
Luma Labs has released the new Ray 2 AI video generator Ray 2 turns text prompts into high-quality 5–10 second videos Ray 2 is available through the Dream Machine platform Luma Labs has premiered a powerful, new AI model for generating videos on its Dream Machine platform called Ray 2. The new model can produce…
Toshiba launched two new portable hard drives, but I think they’ve got something really, really wrong
New Toshiba Canvio drives use the antiquated flat USB-A connector Up to 4TB capacity, meaning no 6TB model, something only WD can offer at the moment There’s also no pricing details available at the time of writing Toshiba has unveiled its latest external hard drives, the Canvio Flex and Canvio Gaming. While Canvio Flex is…