Builders Stage agenda revealed for Disrupt 2026

Builders Stage agenda revealed for Disrupt 2026

The Builders Stage is returning to TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, bringing together founders, startup operators, and investors for practical conversations on what it takes to build and scale successful companies. Hear from startup and venture leaders shaping the tech ecosystem, including Grant Lee, CEO and co-founder of Gamma; Leah Solivan, founder and general partner at Precedent.vc; Robby Stein, VP of…

Read More
Chamath Palihapitiya raises 5M Series A for his AI coding startup, takes CEO role

Chamath Palihapitiya raises $135M Series A for his AI coding startup, takes CEO role

Chamath Palihapitiya, best known for his venture capital firm Social Capital and the All-In podcast, announced Monday that the AI coding startup he founded raised a sizable Series A. The company, 8090 Labs, closed a $135 million round led by Salesforce Ventures with participation from Jeffrey Katzenberg’s WndrCo; David Sacks’ Craft Ventures; fellow All-In hosts…

Read More
Asian AI startups launch Mythos-like models as Anthropic’s export ban drags on

Asian AI startups launch Mythos-like models as Anthropic’s export ban drags on

On Wednesday, Chinese cybersecurity firm 360 reportedly unveiled Tulongfeng, an AI tool it says can go head-to-head with Anthropic’s Mythos. That’s the cybersecurity-focused AI model that is reportedly so powerful, the Trump Administration has currently banned it and its more restricted version, Fable 5, from the hands of non-Americans. Earlier the same week Sakana AI,…

Read More
Corgi, the buzzy Y Combinator-backed insurance tech startup, says it didn’t steal an open source product

Corgi, the buzzy Y Combinator-backed insurance tech startup, says it didn’t steal an open source product

Y Combinator-backed insurance tech startup Corgi became embroiled in yet another controversy earlier this week when Papermark, maker of open source data room software, accused Corgi of stealing its software and passing it off as its own. Corgi denies this, telling TechCrunch, “No code was used from Papermark.” But there were reasons why people believed…

Read More
Early Bird pricing ends tonight for Founder Summit

Early Bird pricing ends tonight for Founder Summit

Tonight is your last chance to save up to $190 on your pass to TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026. Early Bird pricing ends today, at 11:59 p.m. PT, after which rates increase. Founders rarely scale alone. The fastest path to growth comes from learning from founders who’ve already done it, connecting with peers tackling similar challenges, and building relationships…

Read More
a16z-backed Base Power is offering cheaper electricity to the power grid that needs it most

a16z-backed Base Power is offering cheaper electricity to the power grid that needs it most

Energy storage startup Base Power began selling its massive home battery systems to residents of Illinois yesterday, Canary Media reported. Crucially, it’ll be the startup’s first foray into the grid territory operated by PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. grid operator by territory, and one that has particularly struggled to cope with an onslaught of new…

Read More
AI was supposed to kill engineering jobs, but new data suggests they’re the most resilient

AI was supposed to kill engineering jobs, but new data suggests they’re the most resilient

Whether AI is already replacing jobs is the subject of fierce debate. Tech layoffs hit their highest single month total in years in May, and AI was the most-cited reason, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Software engineering, in theory, is the professional field most vulnerable to automation, given the rapid adoption of AI-powered coding…

Read More