Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
Palo Alto Networks agrees to buy CyberArk for $25 billion
Cybersecurity giant Palo Alto Networks announced on Wednesday its intent to acquire identity management and security company CyberArk for $25 billion. The deal, a mix of cash and stock, marks Palo Alto’s entrance into the identity security space, according to a company press release. Palo Alto has been on a shopping spree since Nikesh Arora…
Germ brings end-to-end encrypted messages to Bluesky
A new startup called Germ is bringing end-to-end encrypted messaging to the Bluesky social network, allowing its users to have a more secure option for chats than Bluesky’s existing DMs. After over two years of development, the service is launching its encrypted DMs for Bluesky into beta this week, with plans to gradually onboard new…
Nvidia AI chip challenger Groq said to be nearing new fundraising at $6B valuation
AI chip startup Groq is in talks to raise a fresh $600 million at a near $6 billion valuation, sources tell Bloomberg, although the deal isn’t yet final and terms could change. Groq raised $640 million at a $2.8 billion valuation in August 2024, making this double the valuation in about a year. Groq previously…
Space Force bets on commercial entrants in $4B satcom contest
American warfighters need jam-proof communications, and the Space Force is planning to spend hundreds of millions to ensure they have them. As part of that effort, the service established the Protected Tactical Satcom program to build out secure battlefield communications via satellites. The Space Force has already awarded contracts to defense primes Boeing and Northrop…
Cash App users can now pool money for group payments — even with non-users
Cash App launched a new peer-to-peer payment feature on Tuesday called “pools” that allows users to pool money with friends or family members to pay for expenses like grocery bills, restaurant checks, vacations, and group gifts. Initially available to select users, it will expand more widely in the coming months. Users can create pools through…
SOSV bets plasma will change everything from semiconductors to spacecraft
Sometimes a tool — like a hammer — comes along and everything starts looking like a nail. But other times, new tools end up being more than a simple blunt-force object. The investors at SOSV are betting that plasma will become a nuanced implement capable of everything from enabling fusion power to changing the way…
Waymo taps Avis to manage robotaxi fleet in Dallas
Waymo said it plans to launch a robotaxi service next year in Dallas, the latest city to be added to the Alphabet-owned company’s growing commercial footprint that already includes Los Angeles and San Francisco. This time around, Waymo is partnering with Avis Budget Group to manage its fleet of all-electric autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles. Avis…
AI data analyst startup Julius nabs $10M seed round
Julius AI, a startup that describes itself as an AI data analyst, announced it has raised a $10 million seed round led by Bessemer Venture Partners. Horizon VC, 8VC, Y Combinator, and the AI Grant accelerator participated in the round, along with several high-profile angel investors, including Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas, Vercel CEO Guillermo Rauch,…
Google Chrome adds AI-powered store summaries to help US shoppers
Google on Monday announced an update to its Chrome web browser that will introduce AI-generated store reviews to U.S. shoppers with the aim of helping to determine the best places to make a purchase. The feature, which will be available by clicking an icon just to the left of the web address in the browser,…
Why Dispo’s co-founder made the leap from social media to steelmaking
Daniel Liss, co-founder of the social network Dispo and the dating app Teaser AI, is convinced he’s onto the next big thing: steelmaking. It all started, incongruously, with a few op-eds he wrote for TechCrunch about anti-trust enforcement in social media. The commentaries apparently caught the attention of some folks in Washington D.C., Liss told…
Got any book recommendations?