Reddit’s upcoming changes attempt to safeguard the platform against AI crawlers

Reddit announced on Tuesday that it’s updating its Robots Exclusion Protocol (robots.txt file), which tells automated web bots whether they are permitted to crawl a site. Historically, robots.txt file was used to allow search engines to scape a site and then direct people to the content. However, with the rise of AI, websites are being […]

From Brex exec to venture capitalist

Welcome to TechCrunch Fintech! This week, we’re looking at a Brex exec’s jump to join venture firm a16z, Klarna selling off its payments unit and some mega-raises. To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important fintech stories delivered to your inbox every Tuesday at 7:00 a.m. PT, subscribe here. The big story Ali Rathod-Papier […]

Threads users can now share to the open social web, aka the fediverse

Instagram’s Twitter/X rival Threads is furthering its expansion into the fediverse — the interconnected social network that includes apps like Mastodon, PeerTube, and others running the ActivityPub protocol. On Tuesday, Meta announced that it’s now opening up its beta for sharing to the fediverse to Threads users who are 18 and up and who are […]

Firefox now lets you choose your preferred AI chatbot in its Nightly builds

As browsers continue to add AI features into their products, Mozilla is looking give users some choice in the matter. The company announced on Tuesday that it’s launching an opt-in experiment offering access to different AI services in Nightly, the experimental version of Firefox. The company plans to improve the experience before bringing it to […]

Circular will pay competitor Oura royalties to sell its smart ring in the US

Smart ring makers Oura and Circular Tuesday announced a settlement in an ongoing patent suit. The agreed-upon terms find the French company entering into a multi-year agreement with Oura, wherein it will license the market leader’s intellectual property for devices sold in the U.S. Financial details of the agreement have been kept confidential. Oura has […]

Stability AI lands a lifeline from Sean Parker, Greycroft

Stability AI, the beleaguered generative AI startup behind Stable Diffusion, has raised new cash. But it won’t reveal how much. Greycroft, Coatue Management, Sound Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, O’Shaughnessy Ventures and angel investors Prem Akkaraju, ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Robert Nelsen and Napster founder and ex-Facebook exec Sean Parker have injected fresh capital into Stability, […]

Internet goes dark in Kenya in the wake of major protests over finance bill

London-based internet rights monitoring group NetBlocks has reported a major internet disruption in Kenya following a wave of demonstrations across the country, as police violently cracked down on citizens taking to the streets to protest a government bill to hike taxes despite tough economic times and widespread corruption. The interruption in access comes as the […]

Waymo opens up San Francisco robotaxi service to everyone

Waymo no longer has a waitlist for its San Francisco robotaxi service, removing the final obstacle for customers keen to use the self-driving technology.  Waymo said Tuesday that anyone can download the app and then immediately hail one of its robotaxis in San Francisco — a move that mimics the Alphabet-owned company’s strategy in Phoenix, […]