AI and data infrastructure drives demand for open source startups

A new report highlights the demand for startups building open source tools and technologies for the snowballing AI revolution, with the adjacent data infrastructure vertical also heating up. Runa Capital, the venture capital (VC) firm that upped sticks from Silicon Valley and moved its HQ to Luxembourg in 2022, has published the Runa Open Source Startup […]

How Ember is building an all-electric intercity bus network in the UK

A Scottish company building one of the U.K.’s first all-electric intercity bus networks has raised $14 million (£11 million) in a Series A round of funding as it looks to expand across the entire country. Building any bus network from scratch — electric or otherwise — isn’t something anyone can conjure up overnight with a […]

One dead, dozens sick after taking red yeast pill

By Frances Mao A major Japanese drugmaker has said it is investigating a death and dozens of hospitalisations that could be linked to its red yeast rice pills. At least 76 people were admitted to hospital after taking the beni kōji fermented rice products, the firm says. Kobayashi Pharmaceutical reported the illnesses after issuing a […]

Telegram’s peer-to-peer SMS login service is a privacy nightmare

Telegram has introduced a controversial new feature that grants users a free premium membership in exchange for allowing the instant messaging app to utilize their phone number as a relay for sending one-time SMS passwords to other users attempting to log into the platform, raising concerns about potential privacy risks and the exposure of personal […]

Convenience store owner charged over 'Allah socks'

By Kelly Ng The prominent founder of a Malaysian convenience store chain has been charged over the sale of socks with the word Allah written on them. Chai Kee Kan and his wife, Loh Siew Mui, who is a company director, were accused of “wounding the religious feelings of others”. They pleaded not guilty. If […]

Israel cancels US talks after UN Gaza ceasefire vote

By Christy Cooney Israel has cancelled meetings in Washington after the US declined to veto a UN Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The resolution, which also called for the release of all hostages, followed several failed attempts at similar measures since the 7 October attacks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused […]

Meet Uzbekistan’s first unicorn: e-commerce startup Uzum

Uzum, an e-commerce startup offering online shopping, fintech and food deliveries to millions of customers in Uzbekistan, has raised $114 million in funding, becoming the country’s first unicorn with a valuation of $1.16 billion. Uzbekistan is fertile ground for startups, given the fact that people aged below 30 constitute about 60% of its population of […]