Technology

OpenAI and Perplexity are launching AI-powered shopping assistants, but rival startups aren’t holding back

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✨ Read this must-read post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: AI,Commerce,Daydream,onton,OpenAI,Perplexity 💡 Key idea: With holiday shopping just around the corner, OpenAI and Perplexity both announced AI-powered shopping features this week, which integrate with existing chatbots to help users research potential purchases. The tools are remarkably similar to each other. OpenAI suggests that users can ask ChatGPT for help finding “a new gaming laptop under $1,000 with a screen larger than 15 inches,” or they can share photos of high-end clothing and request something similar for less. Meanwhile, Confusion highlights how a chatbot's memory can augment its users' shopping-related searches,…

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Chinese company Pony AI plans to triple its global robotaxi fleet by the end of 2026

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✨ Discover this must-read post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: Transportation,autonomous vehicles,robotaxis ✅ Key idea: Chinese self-driving vehicle technology company Pony.ai said on Tuesday that it plans to triple the size of its robotaxi fleet by the end of next year as its growth pace and aspirations accelerate. The company, which has about 961 robotaxis in its fleet today, announced that goal during its third-quarter earnings. Pony.ai is targeting a fleet of 1,000 robotaxis by the end of this year. Its goal is to "exceed" 3,000 vehicles by the end of 2026, the company said in its third-quarter earnings report.…

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Microsoft’s chatbot Copilot is leaving WhatsApp on January 15

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🔥 Read this trending post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: AI,Apps,In Brief,Meta,Microsoft,WhatsApp 📌 Main takeaway: Microsoft's Copilot chatbot will no longer be available on WhatsApp after January 15, Microsoft has announced. After that date, WhatsApp users won't be able to chat with the AI ​​unless they switch to Microsoft's Copilot mobile apps or use a web-based chatbot. The company explained that it is removing the Copilot program from the popular messaging application in compliance with the revised WhatsApp platform policies, which were announced last month. At the time, the Meta-owned messaging company said it would no longer support general-purpose chatbots…

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Speechify adds voice typing and voice assistant to its Chrome extension

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💥 Explore this trending post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: AI,Apps,AI assistant,ai dictation,Speechify,voice AI ✅ Here’s what you’ll learn: Speechify has largely been a tool that helps you listen to articles, PDFs, and documents. The company is now adding voice detection features to its Chrome extension, including voice typing and a voice assistant that answers your questions. In the past 12 months, there has been a proliferation of voice detection tools, thanks to the overall quality improvement in speech recognition models. Speechify is attaching its wagon to this train and launching its own dictation tool with English support. Just like…

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The report says Spotify will raise prices in the US in the first quarter of next year

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💥 Discover this must-read post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: Apps,Media & Entertainment,Spotify 📌 Main takeaway: Spotify plans to raise subscription prices in the US in the first quarter of next year, according to a new report from the Financial Times. The move will mark the streaming service's first price hike in the US since July 2024. The company has recently raised prices in several other countries, including the UK, Switzerland and Australia. A Spotify subscription currently costs $11.99 per month in the US. When the service first launched in the country 14 years ago, it cost $9.99 per month.…

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Facebook is competing with Reddit by launching nicknames for Facebook groups

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🚀 Read this trending post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: Apps,Social,Facebook,social media,facebook groups,Meta ✅ Here’s what you’ll learn: Facebook Groups are becoming more similar to Reddit with newly added support for nicknames. The feature, which allows users to post under a custom username instead of their real names, provides an alternative to posting anonymously. Through anonymous posting, users can share without linking the post to their Facebook profile and real identity, but this approach also does not allow other group members to recognize them or their personality, or follow their updates over time. Image credits:Facebook Meta says nicknames will allow…

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A new AI standard tests whether chatbots protect human well-being

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🚀 Discover this insightful post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: AI,AI chatbots,humane bench,building humane technology 💡 Here’s what you’ll learn: AI chatbots have been linked to serious damage to mental health in heavy users, but there have been few metrics to measure whether they protect human well-being or maximize engagement. A new benchmark called HumaneBench seeks to fill this gap by assessing whether chatbots prioritize user well-being and how easily these protections fail under pressure. “I think we're seeing an amplification of the cycle of addiction that we've seen with social media and our smartphones and our screens,” Erika Anderson,…

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X-energy rides the nuclear wave, raises $700M Series D

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🚀 Explore this trending post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: Climate,Enterprise,Startups,Amazon,nuclear power,Jane Street,Amazon Climate Pledge Fund,X-Energy,nuclear fission 💡 Key idea: Nuclear energy startup X-energy has raised $700 million in a Series D round, the company told TechCrunch. The new fundraising campaign comes less than a year after it expanded its Series C from $500 million to $700 million, bringing the total raised in the past year or so to $1.4 billion, a significant sum even in the world of nuclear energy startups. X-energy has raised $1.8 billion to date. X-energy said the new injection will help build the supply chain…

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Hands-on with Stickerbox, the AI-powered sticker maker for kids

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💥 Check out this insightful post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: AI,Gadgets,Startups,TC,kids,families,ai images,stickerbox 💡 Main takeaway: There's a new AI-powered game for kids called Stickerbox, and before you groan, I'm here to tell you that it's surprisingly fun. The Stickerbox, a product originating from Brooklyn-based startup Hapiko, is a voice-activated label printer. The device takes any creative idea you have and turns it into a printed poster that you can then color, peel and stick anywhere. Before trying the device itself, I have to admit that I came with a preconceived negative bias – as did my fellow tester (my…

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Independent workers in India are gaining legal status, but access to social security remains elusive

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✨ Explore this awesome post from TechCrunch 📖 📂 Category: Transportation,Amazon,Flipkart,gig work,gig workers,labor law,Uber,Zepto,zomato 📌 Main takeaway: India has granted legal status to millions of gig workers and platforms under newly implemented labor laws, marking a milestone for the country's delivery, ride-hailing and e-commerce industries - but with benefits unclear and platforms beginning to weigh their liabilities, access to social security remains elusive. This recognition stems from the Social Security Act – one of four labor laws that the Indian government brought into force on Friday – more than five years after Parliament first passed it in 2020. It is…

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