Startups

Monzo partners with TransferWise for international payments – TechCrunch “So what’s going on here then?” I ask. “Two good friends just got even better [friends],” replies TransferWise co-founder Kristo Käärmann laughing, while Monzo co-founder Tom Blomfield, who is also on the video call, smiles approvingly. “Sorry for spoiling your news,” …

Crypto Tourism Is Growing – For Better or Worse Cryptonation. Blockchain Cruise. CryptoCribs. These are just several of the names of tourism programs focused on the blockchain industry, from luxury cruises to Middle East startup tours, that are part of a growing trend targeting crypto-curious travelers. The Blockchain Cruises, organized …

Open source sustainability – TechCrunch Open source sustainability has been nothing short of an oxymoron. Engineers around the world pour their sweat and frankly, their hearts into these passion projects that undergird all software in the modern internet economy. In exchange, they ask for nothing in return except for recognition …

Are scooter startups really worth billions? – TechCrunch It’s been hard to miss the scooter startup wars opening fresh, techno-fueled rifts in Valley society in recent months. Another flavor of ride-sharing steed which sprouted seemingly overnight to clutter up sidewalks — drawing rapid-fire ire from city regulators apparently far more …

WordPress.com parent company acquires Atavist – TechCrunch Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com, WooCommerce, Longreads, Simplenote and a few other things, is acquiring Brooklyn-based startup Atavist. Atavist has been working on a content management system for independent bloggers and writers. With an Atavist website, you can easily write and publish stories …

Lime scooters are live in Paris – TechCrunch Lime is the hot new thing in San Francisco, but will it work in other countries? The company just launched its electric scooter service in Paris. This isn’t the first European city as Lime is also operating in Berlin, Bremen, Frankfurt and …

Sphero acquires a music education startup – TechCrunch It’s hard to say precisely how Sphero’s pivot to education is going in these early stages, but it recently got an infusion of funding and is already out acquiring new startups. The BB-8 maker announced this morning that it’s picked up Specdrums​ …

Citymapper lets you find Ofo, Mobike and scooters around you – TechCrunch Urban transportation app Citymapper quietly rolled out an app update that lets you find many alternative mobility services in the app. You can now find the nearest dockless bike or electric scooter around you (not the Bird and …

Transfer.sh is an instant sharing tool for programmers – TechCrunch File sharing tools are a dime a dozen these days. There’s Dropbox, Google Drive, and iCloud. But what if you want to share something quickly and easily from the command line? That’s why programmer Remco Verhoef created Transfer.sh. The service …

Twitter buys a startup to battle harassment, e-cigs are booming, and a meditation app is worth $250M – TechCrunch Hello and welcome back to Equity, TechCrunch’s venture capital-focused podcast where we unpack the numbers behind the headlines. This week TechCrunch’s Silicon Valley Editor Connie Loizos and I jammed out on a …