Techmeme
December 17, 2024, 4:50 PM

Top News

Wall Street Journal:
Databricks is raising $10B from a16z, Thrive, others at a $62B valuation, among the largest VC raises in history; documents show Databricks has $2.6B in revenue  —  As CEO of Databricks, Ali Ghodsi has performed a series of ‘strategic surgeries’ to make his company one of the fastest-growing startups in Silicon Valley
Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:
The Irish Data Protection Commission fines Meta €251M over a Facebook breach that affected ~29M users globally and ~3M in the EU and EEA in September 2018  —  Meta has been fined €251 million (around $263 million) in the European Union for a Facebook security breach that affected millions of users …
Sean Hollister / The Verge:
Framework releases a $39 modular component to add two extra M.2 slots to the Laptop 16, letting users have 26TB+ of storage, and updates the Laptop 16's cooling  —  The most ambitious laptop ever made just got a long-promised modular upgrade. … At launch, you only had two options …
Edith Hancock / Wall Street Journal:
The European Commission opens a formal DSA investigation into TikTok over concerns foreign actors used it to interfere in the Romanian presidential elections  —  The probe comes after judges in the country annulled the outcome of the first round of presidential elections, citing concerns of Russian interference
Tony Romm / Washington Post:
The US FTC issues long-awaited rules requiring companies to display the full price of hotels, concert tickets, and more up front, rather than hiding “junk fees”  —  The industries must display the full price of a hotel room, concert ticket or sporting event upfront to customers or face potential federal punishment.
Financial Times:
The UK opens a consultation on AI and copyright, and aims to offer an “opt out” copyright exception, force companies to open models to scrutiny, and more  —  Consultation could see easier access to copyrighted works but require tech groups to be clearer on what they have used
New York Times:
Tech consultant Nima Momeni was convicted by a San Francisco jury in the fatal stabbing of Cash App founder Bob Lee that occurred on April 4, 2023  —  Nima Momeni, 40, was convicted by a San Francisco jury in the fatal stabbing of Bob Lee, a well-known tech executive.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
CAA partners with YouTube to help CAA clients identify and remove AI-generated content that features their likeness, with a wider rollout planned in early 2025  —  In what's being touted as the first partnership of its kind, CAA is collaborating with YouTube on a program promising to let actors …
Anna Tong / Reuters:
NYC-based AI-powered accounting startup Basis raised a $34M Series A led by Khosla Ventures, with Nat Friedman, Jeff Dean, Adam D'Angelo, and others investing  —  Artificial intelligence startup Basis has raised $34 million in a Series A funding round for its AI-powered accounting automation product, the company said on Tuesday.
Juro Osawa / The Information:
Sources: Character.AI rival Talkie, one of the most-downloaded AI apps in the US and made by China's MiniMax, prepares an AI video feature to reignite growth  —  Many of you may not have heard of Talkie, a competitor to Character.AI in providing personalized artificial intelligence chatbots.
Molly White / Bloomberg:
After Trump's win, a look at what the crypto industry could do next, including weakening financial rules that might protect consumers from the next crypto crash  —  The industry is now in a position to weaken financial rules that might protect consumers from the next crypto crash.

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Featured Podcasts

Hard Fork:
Hard Fork Live, Part 2: Patrick Collison of Stripe + Kathryn Zealand of Skip + Listener Questions
The future is already here. Each week, journalists Kevin Roose and Casey Newton explore and make sense of the latest in the rapidly changing world of tech.
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Lenny's Podcast:
I've run 75+ businesses. Here's why you're probably chasing the wrong idea. | Andrew Wilkinson (co‑founder of Tiny)
Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover actionable advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
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Great Chat:
AI is killing the summer slowdown
A podcast mostly about tech. Brought to you weekly by Angela Du, Sally Shin, Mac Bohannon, Helen Min, and Ashley Mayer.
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Techmeme Ride Home:
In Meta v. OpenAI, Who's Desperate And Who's Scared?
The day's tech news, every day at 5pm ET. Fifteen minutes and you're up to date.
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Channels with Peter Kafka:
Black Mirror's Charlie Brooker on the problem with tech - and people
Media and tech aren't just intersecting - they're fully intertwined. To understand how those worlds work, Peter Kafka talks to industry leaders, upstarts and observers.
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Spotlight On:
Freshworks CEO Dennis Woodside on translating bold visions into operational excellence
A podcast from Accel about how companies are built, from the people doing the building.
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Earlier Picks

Sonia Rolley / Reuters:
Rishav Chatterjee / Reuters:
CNBC:
Jay Peters / The Verge:
NBC News:
Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch: