TechCrunch Industry News

Instagram today is starting a small global test of the Instagram Shop tab, first announced this May, which allows Instagram users to shop from top brands and creators via a new tab in the app’s navigation bar with just one tap. Here, users will be able to filter products by categories, as they can today […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Maintaining satellites on orbit and ensuring they make full use of their operational lifespan has never been more important, given concerns around sustainable operations in an increasingly crowded orbital environment. As companies tighten their belts financially to deal with the ongoing economic impact of COVID-19, too, it’s more important than ever for in-space assets to […] Learn more about your...

Mercedes-Benz sent out a teaser image and video Monday of its upcoming 2021 S-Class that hints at a sleeker interior that forgoes the bevy of physical knobs and toggles found in previous models in favor of a digital centric design. The teasers illustrate a movement in the automotive industry popularized by Tesla to incorporate large […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/ad...

Responsibly managing machine learning processes is no longer just a desirable component of progress but a necessary one. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

VCs should take note. These are the people who will build the next Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A day after formally completing the sale of Boost, Virgin and other Sprint prepaid networks to Dish, T-Mobile is pulling the plug on Sprint 5G. The move is one in a long list of issues that need sorting out in the wake of April’s $26.5 billion merger. And like a number of other moves, it’s […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

T-Mobile today announced that it has closed a deal that divests Sprint’s pre-paid businesses, including Boost and Virgin Mobile. The news finds Dish entering the wireless carrier game in earnest, courtesy of the $1.4 billion deal. The whole thing was, of course, a key part of T-Mobile’s bid to merge with Sprint. It was a […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A few months back, Google announced plans to reopen some U.S. offices after the July 4th holiday. But the best laid plans, and all of that. Things have obviously not been going great in terms of the United States’ battle with COVID-19, and Google once again finds itself proceeding on the side of caution. As […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Facebook is no longer betting on Lasso, an app it launched a year and a half ago, to take on TikTok . The social juggernaut’s TikTok clone is shutting down on July 10, Lasso alerted users on Wednesday. Launched in late 2018, Lasso was seen as Facebook’s answer to TikTok that’s gained ground with young users, […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Facebook’s recently launched app, Hobbi, an experiment in short-form content creation around personal projects, hobbies, and other Pinterest-y content, is already shutting down. The app first arrived on iOS in February as one of now several launches from Facebook’s internal R&D group, the NPE Team. Hobbi users have now been notified by way of push […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcas...

Consumer spending on mobile apps and app installs grew significantly during the first half of 2020, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new data from Sensor Tower. In the first half of the year, consumers spent $50.1 billion worldwide across the App Store and Google Play — a figure that’s up 23.4% […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Two big new pieces of news today from the ongoing battle between social media and politics. Both Twitch and Reddit have made moves against political content, citing violations of terms of service. Twitch confirmed today that it has temporarily suspended the president’s account. “Hateful conduct is not allowed on Twitch,” a spokesperson for the streaming […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Ford rolled out all the stops Thursday evening for the reveal of its all-new F-150 truck, right down to the splashy videos dominated by electric guitar riffs. Heck, the automaker even cast the sharp-tongued Denis Leary as its MC. Of course, none of that really matters. It’s all about what Ford has done to improve […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Facebook is expanding the availability of the tools it offers to help game streamers and other online creators make money. The social network first launched fan subscriptions in early 2018, giving a small group of creators in the United States and the United Kingdom the ability to charge their fans a $4.99 monthly fee for […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Set for a late-July release, Tenet has been viewed an important bellwether for Hollywood. After all, director Christopher Nolan has long been a surefire blockbuster machine, courtesy of films like the Dark Knight Trilogy, Inception and Interstellar. The mysterious thriller will be a clear test of whether audiences are willing to brave the indoor theater […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Video chat has long been one of the chief selling points of smart screens like the Amazon Echo Show and Google’s Nest Hub Max (the regular Hub is still lacking a camera, mind). But until today, the latter only offered users the option for one-on-one calls. That’s all well and good for the most part, […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With iOS 14, Apple is going to update Apple Maps with some important new features, such as cycling directions, electric vehicle routing and curated guides. But the app is also going to learn one neat trick. In dense areas where you can’t get a precise location, Apple Maps will prompt you to raise your phone […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In recent years, Seattle-based Wyze made a name for itself thanks to making a lot of smart home gadgets affordable. These days, the company sells everything from smart plugs and locks to scales and fitness bands, but what started it all was the $20 Wyze indoor security camera. Today, the company is following that up […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Dell bought EMC in 2016 for $67 billion it was one of the biggest acquisitions in tech history, and it brought with it a boatload of debt. Since then Dell has been working on ways to mitigate that debt by selling off various pieces of the corporate empire and going public again, but one […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The App Store ecosystem today is home to nearly 2 million apps. That means finding new apps to download is now more challenging than ever. This, in turns, leads app developers to funnel more money into App Store Search ads, traditional SEO, and digital advertising in an effort to acquire new users. A new feature […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whatever you do, don’t take your finger off your phone screen. MSHCF, a company striving to build a flashy brand by creating viral moments, is taking the wraps off of their next stunt, an internet-wide competition with as much as $25,000 on the line. How do you win the cash? Open up their new app, […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

During the virtual keynote of WWDC, Apple shares the first details about iOS 14, the next major version of iOS that is going to be released later this year. The most visual change is that the home screen is getting widgets. “This year, we spent time rethinking the iconic experience of the iPhone,” SVP of […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apple held its WWDC keynote today, a virtual affair that managed to convince swaths of the technology industry to watch a pre-recorded video. While TechCrunch has posts galore up on the site about all the latest stuff from Cupertino, we also kept an eye on Apple’s stock price during its event. Doing so is a […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ford has changed the debut of its 2021 Bronco once again because its planned July 9 reveal falls on the birthday of O.J. Simpson, one of the iconic SUV’s most infamous passengers The automaker tweeted Friday that it has moved the unveiling to July 13. The reveal of the all-new Bronco lineup will now happen […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Respawn just dropped a big ol’ bundle of news about its popular free-to-play Battle Royale shooter, Apex Legends, during a livestream event hosted by its parent company, EA. The key bits: Apex is coming to the Nintendo Switch this fall. Playing Apex up until now has meant camping in front of a TV (or rigging […] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices