TechCrunch Industry News

Tesla recorded 336,681 deliveries, its worst quarterly performance in more than two years as the brand suffers a backlash to CEO Elon Musk’s political maneuverings. The dip in sales comes as Musk continues leading DOGE, the “advisory body” that has laid off thousands of federal employees and attempted to eliminate entire agencies and programs; Rivian delivered just 8,640 vehicles in the first three months of 2024, the company’s worst quarterly mark since the end of 2022. But the company says the slow start won’t impact its overall guidance for the year — it still expects to deliver between 46,000 and 51,000 EVs by the end of 2025. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oracle has denied at least one breach, despite evidence to the contrary, as it begins notifying healthcare customers of a separate patient data breach. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Substack continues to double down on video amid TikTok’s uncertain future in the U.S. The company announced on Monday that it’s rolling out a scrollable video feed in its app, making it the latest platform to introduce a TikTok-like feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As it gears up to go public, Chime is going all in on new features in an effort to attract more customers. The digital bank is offering customers who agree to have their paychecks directly deposited into a Chime savings or checking account an APY of 3.75%, it tells TechCrunch exclusively. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Amazon on Monday unveiled Nova Act, a general-purpose AI agent that can take control of a web browser and independently perform some simple actions. Alongside the new agentic AI model, Amazon is releasing the Nova Act SDK, a toolkit that allows developers to build agent prototypes with Nova Act. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

AI web crawling bots are the cockroaches of the internet, many developers believe. FOSS devs are fighting back in ingenuous, humorous ways. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

President Trump is slapping 25% tariffs on all cars imported to the United States, including from our immediate North American neighbors. He’s also placed a 25% tariff on certain parts used to build cars. It’s a decision that will likely supercharge the cost of new and used cars, but it’s also a gift to Tesla Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Americans’ support for a TikTok ban is declining, according to a study from the Pew Research Center. This survey of over 5,000 U.S. adults found that just 34% of respondents supported banning the short form video app. When Pew ran a similar study in 2023, 50% of adults supported the TikTok ban. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Elon Musk's SpaceX is in the spotlight for reportedly allowing Chinese investors to buy stakes through offshore routes. This controversial approach raises critical national security concerns. The discussion dives into the potential risks of foreign investments in American defense firms and questions the transparency of such dealings. Listeners are left pondering what this means for U.S. interests and the future of aerospace.

Armand Jaffer, CEO and founder of Brisk, dives into the transformative impact of AI on education. With a rich background at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, he discusses how Brisk leverages AI to revolutionize teaching and learning. The episode highlights the challenges of detecting AI-generated student work and the consequences of false accusations. Jaffer also emphasizes the growing acceptance of edtech tools among educators and the need for innovative solutions in assessments.