DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ OpenAI’s Cast of Characters
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Jennifer Korn | Paul Glader | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Before OpenAI, Altman was president of Y Combinator, mentoring a host of founders and expanding his network in Silicon Valley. “We are encouraged by the changes to the OpenAI board,” he wrote on X on Wednesday. Mira MuratiNamed by the OpenAI board as Altman’s interim successor on Friday, Murati was replaced by Shear before the weekend was done. In September, she joined the board of directors of Shield AI, a defense technology company building AI pilot technology for aircraft. Will HurdAfter joining the OpenAI board in 2021, Hurd was the third director to exit in 2023.

Persons: OpenAI, Sam Altman, Altman, Elon, Satya Nadella, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Kiko, Emmett Shear, Y, Nadella, ”, Mira Murati, Murati, Shear, “ Mira, ” Nadella, Ilya Sutskever, Brockman, Sutskever, “, we’ve, Adam D’Angelo D’Angelo, Mark Zuckerberg, D’Angelo, Forbes, ” Bret Taylor, Bret Taylor, Elon Musk, Taylor, Justin Kan, Tasha McCauley McCauley, Joseph Gordon, Levitt, McCauley, Greg Brockman Greg Brockman, Peter Thiel, Musk, Helen Toner Toner, AI’s, Toner, Joshua Kushner Kushner, Kushner, Jared Kushner, Karlie Kloss, Charles Kushner, Donald Trump, Larry Summers Summers, Obama, Clinton, Summers, Shivon Zilis, Zilis, Walter Isaacson, Will Hurd, Hurd, Nikki Haley, Reid Hoffman, Hoffman, OpenAI . Hoffman, He’s Organizations: CNN, Stanford University, Microsoft, OpenAI, Colby College, Dartmouth University, Tesla, Time, Phillips Exeter Academy, California Institute of Technology, Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yale University, Justin.tv, GeoSim Systems, Rand Corporation, Centre, Bard College, University of Southern, Harvard University, MIT, Elon, Georgetown’s Center for Security, Emerging Technology, Open, Oscar Health, Memphis Grizzlies, Harvard College, Harvard Business School, Republican, CIA, Allen & Company, Texas, M University, Reid Hoffman LinkedIn, PayPal, LinkedIn, Greylock Partners, SpaceX, Boring Company Locations: Silicon Valley, St, Louis , Missouri, OpenAI, Seattle , Washington, Israel, University of Southern California, North Dakota, Beijing, Georgetown, Canada, United States, Texas, Oxford

More than a quarter of the community of 400 people in Nir Oz were either killed or kidnapped, residents say, making it one of the worst affected kibbutzim. RPG on houses, grenades on civilians.”The Barr family were lucky to have a safe room which locked from the inside. Yonathan and Uri Barr's house, safe room where they hid with lock on door. “(Uri) was crying in the safe room because of that.”The family with whom Yoav was staying also survived in their safe room, and the Barrs were reunited later that day, after the Israeli military arrived. “I don’t think we can go back to Nir Oz because what we’ve been through is horror,” Yonathan Barr said.

Persons: ”, Jonathan Dekel, Chen, Nir, “ It’s, Sagui, Sagui Dekel, Rebecca Wright, Dekel, ” Dekel, Israel, Nir Oz, Uri Barr doesn’t, Yonathan Barr, Uri, ” Uri, Noam, Dad, Yonathan, “, ” Yonathan, Barr, Uri Barr's, Yoav, Eitan, Uri Barr, Yonathan Barr Nir Adar, ” Adar, Adar, Rani, Tamir, he’ll, “ I’m, Nir Adar, Nir Adar ‘, what’s, Jake Sullivan, we’ve Organizations: Israel CNN —, CNN, Hamas, White, National Locations: Eilat, Israel, Iran, Yemen, ”, Red, Syria, Gaza, Jordan, Aqaba, Uri, “, Eden, Connecticut, United States

☆ Meet Emmett Shear, the new interim CEO of OpenAI, who sold his first startup on eBay for $250,000
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Emmett Shear is the new interim CEO of OpenAI following the ouster of Sam Altman. AdvertisementFormer Twitch CEO Emmett Shear has been named the new interim CEO of OpenAI following Sam Altman's shock firing at the artificial intelligence startup over the weekend. AdvertisementWho is Emmett Shear? In 2014, Amazon bought Twitch for $970 million and Shear stayed on as the CEO of the company. He remained at the tech startup accelerator for five years up until June 2016, according to his LinkedIn account.

Persons: Emmett Shear, Sam Altman, Twitch, —, Sam Altman's, Shear, Emmett, Justin Kan, Kiko —, Elliot Noss, Kan —, Combinator Organizations: Amazon, Service, United Airlines, Yale University, eBay, Google Locations: Seattle, Justin.tv

☆ Who is new interim OpenAI CEO Emmett Shear? All you need to know about the man replacing Sam Altman
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

After a weekend of rumor and speculation, Emmett Shear — former co-founder and CEO of Twitch — confirmed he will take the top job at probably the most high-profile AI company in the world. watch nowTwitch was acquired by Amazon for $1 billion in 2014 and Shear stepped down as CEO of Twitch last year. Before Shear started Twitch, he was the co-founder of Kiko Calendar, a calendar app he worked on through the 2005 Y Combinator program. As head of OpenAI, Shear will likely face pressure from regulators who have been heavily scrutinizing AI model companies given the risks the technology poses around misinformation and potential displacement of jobs. Earlier this month, the U.K. held a pivotal summit on AI safety, attended by major foundational AI companies, to discuss some of the most pressing issues in the field.

Persons: Emmett Shear, Eoin Noonan, It's, Sam Altman, Twitch —, Shear, Altman, ChatGPT, Emmett, Justin Kan, Michael Seibel, Kyle Vogt, Kan, Twitch, Y, Kiko Organizations: Web, Getty, Amazon, YouTube Locations: LISBON, PORTUGAL, Lisbon, Portugal, Silicon

☆ Britain rolled back an array of its net zero goals. It could spell pain for climate tech startups, experts say.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Britain's dramatic rollback of its net zero ambitions will threaten climate tech startups' ability to raise fresh capital from investors, industry experts have warned. Sunak said the government remained committed to its obligation to reach net zero by 2050, despite the u-turns. He also unveiled a grant for boiler upgrades, reforms to energy infrastructure planning, and £150 million ($183 million) for the development of green tech. Climate tech is particularly exposed to this as it changes on a country-by-country basis, compared with health tech which has a "stable" and well-established regulatory process. "The bottom line for me is that it will happen independently of the politics now," said SE Ventures' Christiani.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Asif Ghafoor, Kiko Ventures, Arne Mortaeni, Michael Smith, Julien Christiani Organizations: EV, Kiko, Government, Ventures Locations: Europe, Germany, France

☆ SpaceX engineer risked drunk driving rather than ignore an Elon Musk order: book
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Polly Thompson | Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Musk's management style allows him to "move faster, take more risks, break rules, and question requirements", Isaacson writes in his biography published this week. AdvertisementAdvertisementOne engineer, Kiko Dontchev, described how having just returned home to his wife after working three days straight, he was told Musk wanted him back at the hangar. In several cases the brutal management style and intense expectations of the SpaceX CEO prompted employees to quit. But sometimes, tools get worn down and [Musk] feels he can just replace that tool," Hughes told Isaacson. It cares about whether you got the rocket right," he told Isaacson.

Persons: Elon, Walter Isaacson's, Musk, Walter Isaacson, Elon Musk, Isaacson, He's, Kiko Dontchev, PHILIP PACHECO Lucas Hughes, Hughes, It's, Tom Mueller Organizations: SpaceX, Service, Elon, Wall Street, Employees, Crew Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ Before Carlos Alcaraz Was Great, He Was Good Enough to Be Lucky
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Matthew Futterman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

So Grandpa Alcaraz (another Carlos) made sure to include those courts with the development. López Rueda is the tennis-mad chief executive of Postres Reina, which is based in Caravaca de la Cruz. But López Rueda doesn’t just like tennis; he likes to play tennis on red clay. One day López Rueda agreed to watch the boy play and it was unlike anything he had ever seen. Alcaraz became the first, wearing the company logo on his shirts.

Prince Albert of Monaco said in an interview with People magazine that he and his wife, Charlene, would be attending. King Felipe VI of Spain, who ascended to the throne in 2014 after his father’s abdication, will attend, according to the Spanish news media. Crown Prince Fumihito of Japan and Crown Princess Kiko, on behalf of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, will attend, according to the Japanese news media. Credit... Clodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersSeveral members of Britain’s government will attend, as will about 100 heads of state from around the world, according to Buckingham Palace. British RoyalsImage Prince Harry, center, will be present at the coronation, though his wife, Meghan, and their children, will remain in California.

☆ Italy's Illycaffe aims to make a bigger splash in the U.S. market, CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Elisa Anzolin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

North America already accounts for one fifth of the Italian group's revenues and reported a 27% increase in sales last year. Illycaffè reported a 14% increase in revenues to 568 million euros ($615 million) last year. Operating profit grew to 71.4 million euros, despite a 43 million euro increase in costs, mainly linked to increased prices for raw coffee beans, energy and logistics. Scocchia expects an increase in revenues and profitability this year, but the sales growth could be slower compared to last year. The group plans 270 million euro in investments by 2026, with 120 million euros earmarked to enlarge its plant in Trieste in northeast Italy which will double its production capacity.

At least 10 European VC funds have told their founders to pull funds out of Silicon Valley Bank. Silicon Valley Bank's woes spread overseas on Friday morning as tech investors in Europe followed their US peers and advised founders to pull their cash from the bank. The bank's shares plummeted 60% amid concerns among investors and founders about the safety of their cash. The bank has been a stalwart in the tech industry over the past 40 years, acting as a banking partner and investor for startups across the world. Castiglione said that UK funds were only "screwed" if Europe followed suit with the "US panic contagion."

REUTERS/Phil NobleCOVENTRY, England, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Developing fully autonomous vehicles (AVs) that can go everywhere has proven harder and more expensive than expected, but investors are continuing to fund startups that target simpler self-driving vehicle solutions far removed from pedestrians and other vehicles operated by unpredictable humans. Earlier promises made by robotaxi companies of operating fleets of vehicles by the early 2020s have fallen well short. BMW iVentures has also invested in AV truck technology firm Kodiak Robotics, which managing partner Sage said has adopted a simpler approach to areas like mapping. Construction and agricultural equipment - used off-road in low-traffic environments - has been another growth area for AV startups. U.S. agricultural equipment maker AGCO Corp (AGCO.N), for instance, is using the Palo Alto, California-based startup's software for an experimental automated electric planter.

☆ Oxbotica raises $140 mln to deploy self-driving commercial vehicles
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Nick Carey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Self-driving software startup Oxbotica has raised $140 million from investors to speed deployment of autonomous vehicles (AVs) in areas including heavy industry, ports and airports. The Series C round includes funding from new investors including Japanese insurer Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance, the venture capital arm of software company Trimble (TRMB.O) and the venture capital arm of Japanese oil refiner Eneos (5020.T). Oxbotica has now raised about $225 million in total and the company said that additional investors are expected to sign up before the funding round closes in a few months. Once regulations catch up with the industry, the company will start running tests on limited routes for Ocado in 2025, Jackson said. "The proceeds (of this funding round) will really accelerate deployment for our commercial customers."

☆ Without radical changes, TikTok could vanish from the US
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

From burnout among open-source developers to the downfall of Andreessen Horowitz's buzzy tech publication, Future, it's a packed edition. The worker told Insider that they used "exam dumps" to pass technical certifications, and that the answers were easy to find online with a quick Google search. This year, developers told us that they're fed up, and some are quitting and even sabotaging their own projects. Despite the 10% raise, doled out in April, Mailchimp employees told Insider that people nonetheless felt belittled and were quitting in droves. Earlier this year, Andreessen Horowitz's buzzy tech publication Future shut down.

☆ Inside climate tech's record-breaking year where the energy crisis, new regulation, and a maturing debt market helped European startups raise $17.5 billion
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Climate tech was a clear green shoot in a tumultuous 2022 but there will be a delayed correction. But there has been one green shoot: Climate tech. "We've just gotten started when it comes to climate tech," Emitwise's Cozzi said. Many climate tech companies have raised at high valuations, said Magda Lukaszewicz, principal at Balderton Capital. Energy and infrastructure companies are tipped as winners, while pure software plays may see some consolidation, climate tech investors and founders said.

☆ Think long-term, grab land, watch your runway: Here's how European VCs are advising their founders ahead of a looming recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sequoia's iconic 2008 'R.I.P Good Times' presentation still rings true for some investors. Good Times" presentation from 2008. "Because people are so programmed with the whole RIP Good Times thing, the nuance gets lost sometimes." Magda Lukaszewicz, principal at Balderton, echoed this – even if it takes companies longer to achieve said goals. Sequoia's "RIP Good Times" ends on a bleak note: Get Real or Go Home.

☆ Europe's tech ecosystem nursed a hangover in 2022 as the post-pandemic party ended and VCs returned to fundamentals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Callum Burroughs | Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

VCs returned to slower capital deployment and due diligence processes after a record-breaking 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic and the last remnants of the era of cheap money led to reckless abandon in funding markets with tech startups raising capital at record rates, often at valuations untethered from reality. VC cash dried up considerably this year with investors pumping $16 billion into startups in the third quarter of 2022, a 44% annual decline. Numerous VCs told Insider the past two years had felt like an out-of-control celebration with many "now looking around at the aftermath and thinking about tidying up. " "The ecosystem is nursing its hangover after two years of a big party," Arne Morteani, founding partner at Kiko Ventures said.

☆ Percassi family regains full control of KIKO as Peninsula exits
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MILAN, Oct 18 (Reuters) - The Percassi family has bought the 38% stake in Italy's KIKO held by UK private equity fund Peninsula Capital, regaining full ownership of the cosmetics group it had founded in 1997, it said in a statement on Tuesday. The closing of the operation is expected by the end of this year, it added, without disclosing any financial details. Peninsula bought a stake in KIKO back in 2018 to help fund the brand's international growth and boost profitability. Popular due to its cheap but trendy make-up products, KIKO is present in 52 countries with sales of around 750 million euros ($738.53 million). ($1 = 1.0155 euros)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Agnieszka Flak, editing by Cristina CarlevaroOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Carbon accounting startup Emitwise becomes latest climate tech startup to lay off staff as red hot sector jostles with economic downturn
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Layoffs have hit the red-hot climate tech sector as it jostles with the economic downturn. Carbon accounting startup Emitwise has become the latest climate tech startup to lay off staff as the industry jostles with the economic downturn, Insider understands. Climate tech is wide-ranging, encapsulating everything from research and development-heavy batteries to carbon accounting SaaS tools. The energy crisis has been a boon for home energy startups working on rooftop solar, heat pumps, and smart thermostats. At One Ventures' Lin added that in moments of economic difficulty "sometimes the most interesting innovations are born."

☆ Patagonia's charitable change will inspire founders. We spoke to 8 VCs about how startups can create their own climate change legacy.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | Tasmin Lockwood | Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Patagonia's Yvon Chouinard said he was giving away his $3 billion company to fight climate change. Insider spoke to 8 VCs about how hard it is for founders to follow suit and what they can do instead. "Instead of 'going public', you could say we're 'going purpose'," Chouinard wrote. Insider spoke to eight investors to find out why venture capital-backed startups would struggle to replicate Patagonia's model and what they could do instead. This means founders need to be active at an early stage in deciding what to do with their business.

☆ After Instagram rolled back changes due to use backlash, 4 entrepreneurs share their strategies for finding customers on social media
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-02 | by ( Alexandra York | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Social media can help small businesses find customers, but the platforms regularly change. Four entrepreneurs shared their strategies for social media, including cross-platform promotion. Despite the perplexity among small-business owners, many have launched comprehensive social-media marketing campaigns in the hopes of converting users into paying customers. Four founders shared their experiences with social media and best practices for turning followers into customers to keep in line with the platform changes. Use influencers to expand your audienceInfluencer marketing is a continually growing sector of social-media marketing.

☆ TRAGEDIA din Italia. Poveștile celor care au murit, după ce o cabină de teleferic s-a prăbușit de la înălțime
▼ + stars: | 2021-05-24 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +2 min

Serena Costantino, în vârstă de 27 de ani, și iubitul ei iranian Mohammadreza Shahaisavandi, în vârstă de 23 de ani, plănuiseră pentru acest weekend o întâlnire romantică. Roberta și Angelo au crescut în Bari și de câțiva ani se mutaseră în provincia Piacenza. Printre victime s-au aflat și trei membri ai unei familii: Vittorio Zorloni, în vârstă de 54 de ani, soția sa Elisabetta Persanini (38 de ani) și fiul lor Mattia (5 ani), din Vedano Olona. Nu au supraviețuit accidentului nici Itshak Cohen, de 82 de ani, nici soția sa Barbara Cohen Konisky, de 70 de ani. Singurul supraviețuitor este copilul mai mare, de cinci ani, care a ajuns în stare gravă la spitalul pentru copii din Torino.

Persons: Silvia Malnati, Alessandro, Silvia, Serena Costantino, Roberta Pistolato, Angelo Vito Gasparro, Roberta, Angelo, Vittorio Zorloni, Amit, Tal Peleg, Tom, Cohen, Barbara Cohen Locations: Varese, Milano, Verbania, Roma, Iran, Bari, Piacenza, Pavia, Israel, Torino

Search resuls for: "Kiko"

21 mentions found