According to a report in The Information, OpenAI has fired two safety researchers (including an ally of cofounder Ilya Sutskever) for allegedly leaking company secrets. 

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is looking into a possible breach of Sisense, a company that provides business analytics software for many top corporations. TechCrunch has more here.

TikTok is testing virtual influencers that parrot scripts written by advertisers. 

In an effort to promote "transparency," OpenTable has decided to reveal the first names and pictures of people who leave reviews, and the policy applies retroactively, as well. 

The driver of a Mustang Mach-E who crashed into a stationary car in Texas in February was using Ford’s hands-free driver-assistance system, BlueCruise, according to data obtained by TechCrunch.

According to Affinity, VCs need a three-pronged strategy to win at high-quality deal sourcing in 2024: data, relationships, and technology. Turn those ingredients into a recipe for success with their new deal sourcing guide. It features step-by-step guidance and advice from leading dealmakers. Download the guide.

Auradine, a two-year-old startup based in Santa Clara, Ca., that is focused on developing Bitcoin miners with competitive performance and low energy use, raised an $80 million Series B round. StepStone Group, Top Tier Capital Partners, MVP Ventures, and Maverick Capital invested in the deal. Cryptonews has more here.

Factorial, an eight-year-old Barcelona startup that automates HR processes, raised an $80 million round from General Catalyst. Tech.eu has more here.

FloQast, an 11-year-old Los Angeles company whose software uses AI to help accounting teams automate and streamline their financial close processes, such as reconciliations and reporting, raised a $100 million Series E round at a $1.6 billion valuation. The deal lead was Iconiq Growth, with BDT & MSD Partners, World Innovation Lab, Meritech Capital, and Sapphire Ventures also joining in. FinTech Magazine has more here.

Anrok, a five-year-old San Francisco startup that helps SaaS companies manage the collection of sales tax, raised a $30 million Series B round at a $250 million valuation. Khosla Ventures led the deal. Forbes has more here.

Elucent Medical, a 10-year-old company based in Eden Prairie, MN, whose tools use electromagnetic waves to locate and guide the removal of tumors with minimal invasiveness, raised a $42.5 million Series C. Vensana Capital and RC Capital were the co-leads. More here.

Yoshi Mobility, an eight-year-old Nashville startup that provides mobile automotive services like refueling, washing, detailing, oil changes, and vehicle inspections at the customer's location, raised a $26 million Series C round at a $200 million valuation. General Motors Ventures was the lead investor, with Bridgestone Americas, Universal Motors Agencies, and Shikra Limited also stepping up. The company has raised a total of $60 million. TechCrunch has more here.

GTM Buddy, a four-year-old startup based in Durham, NC, whose software integrates into sales teams' workflows to help them manage and enhance their sales processes, raised an $8 million Series A round co-led by Archerman Capital and Leo Capital, with additional participation from Neon Fund and previous investor Stellaris Venture Partners. VentureBeat has more here.

Knostic, a one-year-old Israeli startup that says it helps companies prevent internally created LLMs from exposing proprietary business information, raised a $3.3 million pre-seed round from Shield Capital, Pitango First, DNX Ventures, and Seedcamp. CTech has more here.

MODE, a startup based in San Mateo, CA, that is developing a generative AI assistant for factories and construction sites using IoT technology, raised a $8.75 million Series B round. Investors included SBI Investment, True Ventures, JR East Startup, and Daiichi Jitsugyo. The company has raised a total of $20+ million. SiliconANGLE has more here.

OpenTrade, a one-year-old London startup that uses blockchain technology to structure real-world financial assets into on-chain, yield-generating instruments for financial institutions, raised a $3.2 million seed round from Andreessen Horowitz, CMCC Global, Draper Dragon, Ryze Labs, and Plassa Capital. The Block has more here.

PeerDB, a one-year-old startup based in San Carlos, CA, that allows businesses to replicate data from their PostgreSQL databases to data warehouses, raised a $3.6 million seed round co-led by 8VC and Y Combinator, with Wayfinder Ventures, Webb Investment Network, Flex Capital, Rogue Capital, Pioneer Fund, and Orange Collective also participating. SiliconANGLE has more here.

PVML, a four-year-old Tel Aviv startup that provides a platform that enables companies to use sensitive data in analytics and machine learning while ensuring privacy and compliance with data protection laws, raised an $8 million seed round led by NFX and including FJ Labs and Gefen Capital. CTech has more here.

Simbian, a one-year-old startup based in Mountain View, CA, that uses AI to control existing security tools, raised a $10 million round from Gokul Rajaram, Aditya Singh, Icon Ventures, Firebolt, and Rain Capital. TechCrunch has more here. 

Udio, a New York startup that has developed an AI-powered app that enables users to instantly create music, raised a $10 million seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with creators like will.i.am also pitching in. Music Business Worldwide has more here.

Uplink, an eight-year-old startup that connects blockchain technology with physical systems and offer tokens to incentivize people to crowdsource infrastructure, raised a $10 million round led by Framework Ventures. CoinDesk has more here.

Zoth, a one-year-old Singapore startup that provides a platform whose aim is to make it easier for investors to put their money into real-world assets, like government bonds or corporate credit, via blockchain technology, raised a $2.5 million round. Blockchain Founders Fund led the transaction, with additional funds provided by Borderless Capital, Mindfulness Capital, YAP Capital, Momentum6, Singularity DAO, Aztlan Capital, Outlier Ventures, Decubate, and Wormhole Ecosystem Fund. The Defiant has more here.

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Cendana Capital, a fund of funds that invests in seed-stage venture firms, and Kline Hill Partners, a firm that buys small previously-owned private assets, are teaming up with a new joint $105 million fund to purchase secondary shares. TechCrunch has more here. 

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy wrote in his annual shareholder letter that “Generative AI may be the largest technology transformation since the cloud ... and perhaps since the Internet." The WSJ has more here. 

Elon Musk may have tweeted this month about unveiling Tesla's new robotaxi service this summer, but robotaxi regulators say they know nothing about it. 

Hinge, a startup that provides virtual physical therapy services to people with chronic musculoskeletal conditions, is laying off 10% of its workforce. The company has raised a total of $828 million from investors like Tiger Global and Coatue Management. TechCrunch has more here.

Bad reviews are turning the Humane AI's launch into a "dumpster fire."

Cathie Wood’s Ark Investment Management revealed that its $54 million VC fund has a stake in OpenAI, a notable achievement given the size of the startup's other investors.

San Francisco's Municipal Transportation Agency (MUNI, for short) still uses floppy disks.

OpenAI has instructed ChatGPT to cut out the chit-chat and get down to business. TechCrunch has more here. 

You might want to consider listening to this podcast. The host manages a $1.6 trillion investment fund.

Leaked SpaceX financials from 2018 and 2019 show the big bets Elon Musk made on rockets and its Starlink satellite service.

Lenny Kravitz's insane workout has trainers talking.

Soccer superfans are already preparing for the North American World Cup in 2026.

In Australia, a horse considered boarding a commuter train before ultimately bolting. “The horse had planned its journey but got colt feet and decided to hoof it," concluded New South Wales' transport agency.

A platinum Rolex that would make Patrick Bateman proud.

It's not just a coffee grinder; it's a "statement piece" for your counter.