Slow Ventures cuts first check from $60M creator fund into woodworking founder

Recapping this week in startups

View this email online in your browser  August 15, 2025 TechCrunch Top 3 Slow Ventures cuts first check from $60M creator fund into woodworking founder: This marks the first investment for Slow's $60 million Creator Fund since its launch in February. The fund looks to help creators launch businesses, under the belief that what made them successful influencers is what can also make them a good founder.  Read More The computer science dream has become a nightmare: Fresh computer science graduates are facing unemployment rates of 6.1% to 7.5% — more than double what biology and art history majors are experiencing, according to a recent Federal Reserve Bank of New York study. Read More Lovable projects $1B in ARR within next 12 months: Lovable is a vibe coding startup growing phenomenally quickly, according to new sales projections from CEO Anton Osika.  Read More A message from Persona Your startup's growth depends on who you onboard Every new user is a risk — or a revenue opportunity. Whether you're building a next-gen AI product or launching a new digital platform, Persona's low-code identity verification platform helps you onboard and verify customers, fight fraud, and deliver a safer user experience. Sign Up Now Must-Reads Cohere hits a $6.8B valuation as investors AMD, Nvidia, and Salesforce double down: Cohere's market proposition has always been to offer secure LLMs specifically geared for enterprise use, not for consumers. Read More Perplexity offers to buy Chrome for billions more than it's raised: Perplexity tells TechCrunch the terms of the offer include a commitment to keep Chrome's underlying engine, Chromium, open source and to invest $3 billion into it. Read More Inside the Box: Aaron Levie on reinvention at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025: Aaron Levie of Box joins the Disrupt Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 in October. Read More Buzzy AI startup Multiverse creates two of the smallest high-performing models ever: It humorously calls this family the Model Zoo because one is like the size of a fly's brain and the other the size of a chicken's. Read More Monarch Tractors won't be built by Foxconn after Ohio factory sale: Monarch's tractors were the only vehicles being built by Foxconn in Ohio after Lordstown Motors, Fisker Inc., and IndiEV went bankrupt. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Showcase your brand to 10,000+ tech leaders Get your brand in front of 10,000+ tech and VC leaders over three action-packed days at Disrupt 2025 this October. Boost your visibility, spark meaningful connections, and position your company at the forefront of innovation. Tables are selling fast. Secure your exhibit space before your competitor beats you to it. Book Now Last but Not Least Cohere hires long-time Meta research head Joelle Pineau as its chief AI officer: Cohere has hired Joelle Pineau, Meta's former VP of AI research who previously oversaw the tech giant's fundamental AI research (FAIR) lab. In her newly created Chief AI Officer role, Pineau will oversee AI strategy across Cohere's research, product, and policy teams. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2025 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107

Three weeks after acquiring Windsurf, Cognition offers staff the exit door

Plus the rest of this week's biggest stories

View this email online in your browser  August 09, 2025 TechCrunch Top 3 Three weeks after acquiring Windsurf, Cognition offers staff the exit door: Cognition is also laying off 30 employees. Those who don't take the buyout are expected to work 80+ hour weeks. Read More Sam Altman addresses 'bumpy' GPT-5 rollout, bringing 4o back, and the 'chart crime': The Reddit AMA got spicy as users peppered OpenAI with questions, and some asked the company to bring back its previous model. Read More Tesla shuts down Dojo, the AI training supercomputer that Musk said would be key to full self-driving: The disbanding of Tesla's Dojo efforts follows the departure of around 20 workers, who left the automaker to start their own AI company dubbed DensityAI focused on data center services for industries. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Join 10,000 tech & VC leaders at Disrupt 2025 in Oct 250+ top tech voices. 200 sessions. 10,000+ attendees. 3 days straight — October 27–29 at Moscone West in San Francisco. Don't miss valuable takeaways across 6 industry stages, breakouts, roundtables, and unmatched networking. All at the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt. Register now to save up to $675 on your ticket. Register Now This Week's Must-Reads Key sections of the US Constitution deleted from government's website: Internet sleuths say the U.S. Constitution's website is now missing key sections from its website, including a key legal provision relating to habeas corpus, which protects citizens from unlawful detention. Read More The backlash against Duolingo going 'AI-first' didn't even matter: Duolingo faced significant backlash for announcing that it would become an "AI-first" company -- and yet, the app posted strong financials this quarter. Read More OpenAI's GPT-5 is here: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says GPT-5 is the "best model in the world," and aims to make ChatGPT more intuitive to use. Read More OpenAI priced GPT-5 so low, it may spark a price war: Developers who have had early access are touting GPT-5's pricing as much better than competing models. Read More Instagram takes on Snapchat with new 'Instagram Map': Instagram notes that location sharing is off by default on Instagram Map, and a user's location only updates when they open the app, meaning it doesn't provide real-time location updates. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Showcase your brand to 10,000+ tech leaders Get your brand in front of 10,000+ tech and VC leaders over three action-packed days at Disrupt 2025 this October. Boost your visibility, spark meaningful connections, and position your company at the forefront of innovation. Don't wait. Secure your exhibit space before your competitor beats you to it. Book Now Last but Not Least Google says hackers stole its customers' data by breaching its Salesforce database: Google attributed the breach to a hacking group, ShinyHunters, known for targeting big companies and their cloud-based databases. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2025 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107