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They include eight chief executives of the 11 states that formed the Confederate States of America, which seceded and waged war to preserve slavery. Although white people enslaved Black people in Northern states in early America, by the eve of the Civil War, slavery was almost entirely a Southern enterprise. South Carolina, where the Civil War began, illustrates the familial ties between lawmakers and the nation’s history of slavery. Each of the seven white lawmakers who served in the 117th Congress is a direct descendant of a slaveholder, Reuters found. In researching America’s political elite, Reuters found names – almost always just a first name – of 712 people enslaved by the ancestors of the political elite.

Persons: Black, Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Tom Cotton, Elizabeth Warren, Tammy Duckworth, Jeanne Shaheen, Joe Biden, –, Donald Trump –, Jimmy Carter, George W, Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch –, Asa Hutchinson, Doug Burgum, Tim Scott, James Clyburn, Henry McMaster, ”, Henry Louis Gates Jr, Gates, ” “, ” Gates, enslavers, Tony Burroughs, Biden, Obama, McConnell, “ it’s, ” Burroughs, LINDSEY GRAHAM, Joseph Maddox, Maddox, Sela, Rubin, James, Sal, Sam ”, Graham, Graham didn’t, NANCY MACE, Nancy Mace, Drucilla Mace, John Mace, Hector Godbolt, John Mace’s, Godbolt, “, ” Nancy Mace, TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Duckworth, Henry Coe, Coe, Margaret, Isaac, Warner, George …, Isaac Franklin –, “ There’s, ” Duckworth, Tom Bergin, Makini Brice, Nicholas P, Brown, Donna Bryson, Lawrence Delevingne, Brad Heath, Andrea Januta, Gui Qing Koh, Tom Lasseter, Grant Smith, Maurice Tamman, Blake Morrison Organizations: U.S, Reuters, Republicans, Supreme, Republican, Harvard University, PBS, United States Congress, Geographic, Journalists, Black, Thomson Locations: America, U.S, Confederate States, Arkansas, North Dakota, Black, Northern, Southern, South Carolina, Congress, New Hampshire , Maine, Massachusetts, United States, Illinois, Virginia, Frederick County , Virginia

☆ Prosecutors to Seek Death Penalty in Idaho Murders Case
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs | Mike Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The NewsProsecutors in Idaho said they planned to seek the death penalty against the man accused of murdering four University of Idaho students in a home near campus last fall. At a hearing last month, Mr. Kohberger declined to enter a plea, leading the judge to enter a not-guilty plea on his behalf. Idaho has not executed any prisoner since 2012, and Mr. Thompson noted that he was allowed, by law, to change his mind later and reverse his decision to seek the death penalty. The family members of one victim, Kaylee Goncalves, said in a statement on Monday that they were grateful the prosecutors were pursuing the death penalty. “There is no one more deserving than the defendant in this case,” they said.

Persons: ’ Bill Thompson, —, Bryan Kohberger, Kohberger, “, ” Mr, Thompson, Kaylee Goncalves, ” Organizations: Prosecutors, University of Idaho, Washington State University Locations: Idaho, Latah County

From the start, the plan had been to push boundaries — to go where no one had gone before, as Richard Stockton Rush III liked to say. One partner was experienced in start-ups and passionate about “making humanity a multiplanet species.” The other, Mr. Rush, was an aerospace engineer and investor with a family fortune. Rush founded OceanGate Expeditions, the company whose submersible is presumed to have imploded during an expedition to the Titanic, killing Mr. The founders’ goal for OceanGate, Mr. Sohnlein said, was to make deep-sea voyaging as accessible to wealthy tourists and researchers as entrepreneurs like Elon Musk had made space travel.

Persons: Richard Stockton Rush III, Rush, ” Guillermo Sohnlein, ’, Sohnlein, Elon Musk, ”, “ Organizations: OceanGate Expeditions, OceanGate, Elon, SpaceX

This week’s attempt to rescue the five individuals trapped in the submersible, includes both the U.S. Navy and the Coast Guard. But, she said, when the cost of search and rescue efforts “crosses a certain threshold, funds may be diverted from N.P.S. The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to questions about the expense of past extensive search and rescue efforts. Credit... U.S. Coast Guard, via Associated PressMr. Derreumaux said he was thankful to the Coast Guard for saving his life, along with the lives of many others in need of its help. “I would not have called the Coast Guard if it weren’t a life-threatening situation,” he said.

Persons: ”, Chris Boyer, —, Boyer, Cynthia Hernandez, Peter Anderson, Cyril Derreumaux, kayaker, Derreumaux, “, ” Claire Fahy Organizations: U.S . Navy, Coast Guard, National Association for Search, National Park Service, OceanGate Expeditions, Abercrombie, Kent, The Coast Guard, San Francisco Chronicle, Coast Guard helicopter, . U.S . Coast Guard, Associated Press, Guard Locations: United States, New Hampshire, N.P.S, California, Hawaii, Marin County, Calif, . U.S

But Titan, the lost submersible from the company OceanGate, is a technological maverick based on novel concepts that differ from standard designs. “I’ve had three people ask me about making a dive on it,” he said in reference to the lost submersible. Private vessels — those used on superyachts, exploratory craft, tourists jaunts — are not formally regulated by any governmental or intergovernmental agency. Nor do they meet the rigorous standards that are applied to deep-sea craft used by the United States Navy and other government agencies. “We are proud that every submersible delivered remains in active service and certified to its original design depth,” it says on the company’s website.

Persons: ”, Bruce H, Robison, Alfred S, McLaren, Navy submariner, “ I’ve, ‘, OceanGate, submersibles, jaunts, Jennifer, Dr Organizations: Aquarium Research, Explorers Club of New, United States Navy, Lloyd’s, American Bureau of Shipping, ” Triton, Triton Locations: Monterey, California, Navy, Explorers Club of New York City, British, Everett, Wash, Houston, American

☆ Hot AI startup ElevenLabs confirms it's raised $19 million from Andreessen Horowitz and GitHub's former CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

AI company ElevenLabs has raised $19 million in fresh funding, confirming earlier Insider reporting. Year-old AI voice startup ElevenLabs has raised $19 million in early-stage funding, as venture capital investors rush to back firms in generative AI. Cofounder and CEO Mati Staniszewski previously told Insider that the startup saw huge potential in the publishing and audiobooks sector. Since launching its beta platform in January 2023, the startup says it has hit 1 million users and generated over 10 years of audio content. Credo Ventures and Concept Ventures, which backed the startup's $2 million pre-seed round, also joined the new round.

Persons: ElevenLabs, Andreessen Horowitz, Nat Friedman, Daniel Gross, Mike Krieger, Mustafa Suleyman, Brendan Iribe, Mati Staniszewski, Staniszewski Organizations: Venture, Ventures, Concept Ventures Locations: London, New York

☆ OceanGate was warned of potential for ‘catastrophic’ problems with Titanic mission.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Jenny Gross | Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Leaders in the submersible craft industry were so worried about what they called the “experimental” approach of OceanGate, the company whose craft has gone missing, that they wrote a letter in 2018 warning of possible “catastrophic” problems with the submersible’s development and its planned mission to tour the Titanic wreckage. The letter, obtained by The New York Times, was sent to OceanGate’s chief executive, Stockton Rush, by the Manned Underwater Vehicles committee of the Marine Technology Society, a 60-year-old trade group that aims to promote ocean technology and educate the public about it. The signatories — more than three dozen people, including oceanographers, submersible company executives and deep-sea explorers — warned that they had “unanimous concern” about OceanGate’s development of the Titan submersible, the same craft that is now missing in the North Atlantic with five people on board. The chairman of the committee, Will Kohnen, said in an interview Tuesday that the letter grew out of fears about what could happen if the company did not stick to established standards.

Persons: —, Will Kohnen Organizations: The New York Times, Stockton Rush, Manned, Vehicles, Marine Technology Society, Titan

“The submersible industry had significant concerns over the strategy of building a deep sea expedition submersible without following existing classification safety guidelines,” Mr. Kohnen said. OceanGate said in the post that because its Titan craft was so innovative, it could take years to get it certified by leading assessment agencies. “Bringing an outside entity up to speed on every innovation before it is put into real-world testing is anathema to rapid innovation,” the company wrote. The submersible sustained modest damage to its exterior, he wrote, leading OceanGate to cancel the mission so it could make repairs. Still, Mr. Concannon wrote in the filing, 28 individuals had been able to visit the Titanic wreckage on the craft in 2022.

Persons: —, Will Kohnen, Mr, Kohnen, Rush, OceanGate, Bart Kemper, ”, Kemper, Charles Kohnen, Will Kohnen’s, “, David Concannon, Concannon, Rebecca Beach Smith, Kitty Bennett Organizations: The New York Times, Stockton Rush, Manned, Vehicles, Marine Technology Society, Titan, Atlantis, Eastern, of, Court Locations: Canadian, U.S, of Virginia

☆ One of Revolut's long-term investors just slashed the value of its stake in the fintech by 40%
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A second investor in London-based Revolut has slashed its valuation of the fintech this year. Molten Ventures, a long-term backer, has reduced the value of its position in the company by 40%. Revolut is the latest fintech star to take a valuation haircut, following on from the likes of Stripe and Klarna. A second Revolut investor has slashed its valuation of the London-based fintech company as the price correction of high-value private startups continues. Molten cut the value of its stake in Revolut from £91.3 million ($116.8 million) last year to £54.5 million ($69.7 million) as of the end of March.

Persons: Revolut, SoftBank, Draper, Martin Davis, Davis Organizations: Molten Ventures, Tiger Global, BDO, Financial, Financial Times, City Locations: London, Revolut, Europe

☆ Trezy, a fintech that uses AI to help small businesses manage cash flow, just raised $3.3 million with this 23-slide pitch deck
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Trezy, a fintech startup that helps small businesses manage cash flow, has raised $3.3 million. Trezy, a fintech startup that uses AI to help small businesses manage cash flow, has raised $3.3 million. Trezy also automatically identifies and categorizes payments while also tracking cash position in real-time as well as monitoring unpaid invoices. In effect, Trezy's offering is designed to remedy the often opaque world of accounting and financial planning for small business owners. The startup has raised $3.3 million in seed funding in a round led by Seedcamp and Playfair Capital, with participation from Kima Ventures.

Persons: Trezy, Quentin Lacointa, Seedcamp, Lacointa Organizations: Playfair, Kima Ventures, SME Locations: Seedcamp, Paris, Amsterdam, Netherlands

☆ Generative AI startup Synthesia just raised $90 million in fresh funds from US fund Accel and Nvidia at a $1 billion valuation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

London-based generative AI firm Synthesia has raised $90 million in new funding. Synthesia is now valued at $1 billion, making it the latest AI unicorn despite the difficult market. Generative AI startup Synthesia has raised $90 million in new funding at a unicorn valuation. "What we're also proud of is being a leading AI company that's based in Europe, we intend to stay in Europe and build an impactful AI company here because the talent is available." Synthesia previously raised $50 million in funding in December 2021 in a Series B round led by Kleiner Perkins, with participation from GV.

Persons: Synthesia, We've, Victor Riparbelli, OpenAI's, it's, Kleiner Perkins, Riparbelli, David Beckham Organizations: Accel, GV Locations: London, NVentures, Europe

☆ British payments fintech Volt in talks to raise fresh funds from Coinbase-backer IVP, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

London-based fintech startup Volt is set to raise fresh funds, sources say. The company, founded in 2019, is in talks with VC firm IVP over a deal worth around $50 million. British fintech startup Volt is in talks to raise fresh capital from Silicon Valley investing firm IVP, sources say. The payments firm, founded in 2019, has already raised around $28 million to date and counts Swedish investor EQT Ventures among its biggest backers. Volt is set to raise around $50 million as part of the deal, two London-based sources said.

Persons: Slack, PSD2, IVP, Hopin, Tom Greenwood, Jordan Lawrence Organizations: EQT Ventures, Fuel Ventures, Open Finance Association, Open Banking, IFX Locations: British, Silicon Valley, London, Europe, Volt's, Brazil

☆ Early-stage investor Black Seed wants to help create the Black Silicon Valley. It just raised $6.25 million to do just that.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

London-based Black Seed has raised $6.25 million to back early-stage Black founders. The fund wants to create a "Black Silicon Valley" in London by investing in seed-stage startups. Black Seed, a VC fund dedicated to backing Black founders in the UK, has raised $6.25 million to invest in early-stage tech. Based out of Brixton, south London, Black Seed is the brainchild of Cyril Lutterodt and Karl Lokko. Black Seed has indicated that intends to raise the full amount.

Persons: Cyril Lutterodt, Karl Lokko, Lutterodt, We've, Lokko, hasn't, Black, haven't Organizations: Molten Ventures, Ventures, University of Texas, WestRiver Locations: London, Brixton, Manchester, Europe, Atomico, Black, Soho, Mayfair

☆ Donald Trump Is Arraigned on Federal Charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Matthew Cullen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Miami this afternoon to criminal charges related to his handling of classified documents. It was the first time in the country’s history that a president, current or former, was booked on federal charges. Inside the courtroom, Trump — wearing a dark suit and a red tie — sat with his arms crossed at the defendant’s table while the magistrate judge overseeing the hearing described the indictment. It includes 37 counts, lodged against Trump last week by the special counsel, Jack Smith, that he kept and refused to return sensitive government documents after leaving office. “It was all pretty remarkable.”Tonight, Trump is traveling to his golf club in Bedminster, N.J., where he plans to deliver a statement about his indictment.

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, —, Jack Smith, “, Nicholas Bogel, Burroughs Organizations: Trump Locations: Miami, U.S, Bedminster, N.J

During his arraignment, Mr. Trump is expected to be advised of his rights, and a judge will assess whether he has legal representation. The case against Mr. Trump is the second criminal prosecution against the former president this year. Mr. Trump was already arraigned in April in a New York courthouse on state charges that he falsified business records. In the case that has brought him to Miami, Mr. Trump has been charged with 37 counts of unauthorized retention of national security information. After the court appearance, Mr. Trump is expected to fly to Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., to give remarks defending himself in the evening.

Persons: Wilkie, Ferguson Jr, Donald J, Trump, Francis X, Suarez, Mr, We’re, James, John Rowley —, Todd Blanche, Christopher M, Jay I, Bratt, Julie Edelstein, Manny Morales, Morales, “, ”, that’s, ” Adam Goldman, Alan Feuer, Charlie Savage Organizations: Mr, Trump, Suarez of Miami, Republican, United States Supreme, Justice Department’s, Trump National Golf Club, Capitol, Miami police Locations: Miami, United States, New York, Florida, Bedminster, N.J, MIAMI

For the second time this year, Democrats find themselves in a complicated position: torn between celebrating a long-sought indictment of Donald J. Trump and proceeding with caution. The party is in near-universal agreement that Mr. Trump should face federal charges for retaining classified documents and resisting investigators’ efforts to recover them. When Mr. Trump was indicted in March, Mr. Bennett questioned whether the offenses the former president had been accused of were worth the political risk of an indictment. This time, Mr. Bennett said, he has no doubts about the indictment’s necessity. Already, many leading Republicans have rallied around Mr. Trump; some have gone so far as to suggest outright war.

Persons: Donald J, Trump’s, Trump, ”, Greg Landsman, “, ” Matt Bennett, Bennett, Mr, “ Trump, Patricia Todd, Laleh Ispahani, George Soros, ” Maria Cardona, ” Ms, Cardona, ” Reid J, Epstein Organizations: Mr, Republican, Republicans, Democratic, Alabama Democratic Party, Democrats, Open Society Locations: New York City, York, Ohio, United States

A circuslike atmosphere spread across the grounds of the federal courthouse where former President Donald J. Trump was set to appear on Tuesday, with hundreds of reporters in downtown Miami alongside those who wanted to be seen and heard. The small but colorful crowd included dozens of Trump supporters and a handful of critics, many dressed eccentrically to get their messages across on camera. There was the Uncle Sam who sped around the courthouse grounds on a two-wheeled hoverboard singing pro-Trump songs, the woman with a unicorn horn affixed to her forehead who wore an “Aunt-ifa” shirt and chanted derisively about the former president, and the man in a black-and-white jail jumpsuit carrying a sign that read, “Lock Him Up.”Adding to the buzz of the sunbaked scene — temperatures had reached 88 degrees by lunchtime — were trucks with flags and loudspeakers, and several people on foot with selfie sticks who broadcast live video streams to thousands of viewers while weaving in and out of the crowds.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Sam Organizations: Trump, ifa Locations: Miami

In the days leading up to his arraignment in Miami, former President Donald J. Trump and several of his allies called on supporters to rally to his side. Stone Jr., Mr. Trump’s longtime political adviser, called for protests, insisting that they should be peaceful. A Miami chapter of the Proud Boys — long associated with Mr. Stone — echoed the invitation, posting a flier on its Telegram page last week advertising an event at the federal courthouse on Tuesday morning. All of this raised the level of concern among civic leaders in the city, who issued calls for protesters to remain peaceful. It did not appear that any Proud Boys showed up and about 500 people, including one with a pig’s head on a spear, answered Mr. Trump’s call to action.

Persons: Donald J, Roger J, Stone Jr, Trump’s, Stone —, Sam, ” Organizations: Trump, ifa Locations: Miami

☆ Venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz to open first office outside of the US in London as it bets on the UK to become leader in crypto regulation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz is set to open its first office outside of the US in London. The Silicon Valley giant is betting on the UK to become a leader in crypto regulation. Venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz is set to open its first office outside of the US in London as it bets on the British government to become a leader in crypto regulation. Meanwhile, venture capital funding to crypto companies has collapsed over the past year. Andreessen general partner Chris Dixon said that crypto was still in its "early innings" and that technology takes "decades to develop," in a blog post announcing the London office.

Persons: Andreessen Horowitz, Chris Dixon, Sriram Krishnan, Binance, Rishi Sunak, Dixon, Sunak, there's Organizations: Venture, Twitter, Facebook, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, School from, Catalyst, Bessemer, Lightspeed Venture Partners Locations: London, Europe, School from London, Silicon, Sequoia

☆ European tech fund EQT Growth set to poach investor from Goldman Sachs who will join as a new partner, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

European venture fund EQT is set to hire a Goldman Sachs investor as a partner, Insider understands. A managing director from Goldman Sachs Growth Equity is set to join the fund, sources say. An investor at Goldman Sachs' startup investment arm is set to depart the banking giant to join up with Swedish private equity and venture firm EQT Growth, Insider understands. Kirk Lepke, a London-based managing director at Goldman Sachs Growth Equity, is primed to be poached by the Stockholm investor, two sources familiar with the matter said. Both EQT Growth and Goldman Sachs declined to comment.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Kirk Lepke, Lepke, EQT, Mollie, Lepke's, Julien Bek Organizations: Goldman Sachs Growth Equity, Goldman, DoorDash, Torch, Summit Partners, Apple Locations: Europe, London, Stockholm, New York, Boston, Lithuanian, Crunchbase

The indictment gives the clearest picture yet of the files that Mr. Trump took with him when he left the White House. Mr. Trump is expected to appear in Federal District Court in Miami on Tuesday afternoon. Mr. Trump continued to rail against the indictment on Friday, calling it the “greatest witch hunt of all time,” in a Truth Social post. Two lawyers, James Trusty and John Rowley, have left Mr. Trump’s legal team, and will no longer represent him in the documents case. “I will be represented by Todd Blanche, Esq., and a firm to be named later,” Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Jack Smith, “, ”, Waltine, —, Nauta, Trump’s, FVEY, Aileen M, Cannon, Judge Cannon, Biden, James, John Rowley, Todd Blanche, ” Mr, Charlie Savage, Nicholas Nehamas Organizations: White, “ United, Prosecutors, Mr, Court, General Services Administration Locations: “ United States, United States, Florida, Iran, Bedminster, N.J, U.S, Britain , New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Miami, White, Mar, Esq

☆ The FOMO is real for venture capitalists paying big premiums to invest in AI startups right now
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Callum Burroughs | Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Investors plowed about $25 billion into AI companies in the first three months of 2023. Other US generative AI startups including Adept, Inflection AI, Pinecone and Runway have all raised major rounds in the last few months. AI is minting unicorn-valued companies even in the tech downturnFunding into AI startups was down slightly for the full-year in 2022, matching a broader downturn in tech funding. And VC funding to generative AI startups specifically, many of which are very early-stage businesses, topped $1.7 billion in Q1 2023, per Pitchbook. "No one wants to invest in AI that's going to wipe out humanity," said AlbionVC's Grimm.

Persons: Warren Buffett, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Imran Ghory, Meta, Little, ChatGPT, David Grimm, Nathan Benaich, Benaich, VCs, Geoffrey Hinton, AlbionVC's Grimm Organizations: Blossom, Google, Facebook, Air Street Capital, Investors, EU, Stanford University, Venture Locations: OpenAI, London, Europe, French

☆ Banking-as-a-service fintech Griffin just raised $13.5 million. Check out the 15-slide pitch deck it used to land the fresh funds.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Banking-as-a-service startup Griffin just raised $13.5 million in fresh funds. The startup enables businesses to skip the process of finding a banking partner. Check out the 15-slide pitch deck Griffin used to raise the Series A round below. British fintech startup Griffin has raised $13.5 million in fresh funds just months after it secured a UK banking license. Griffin has raised $35.7 million to date, including a $15.5 million raise in July 2022.

Persons: Griffin, David Jarvis, Allen Rohner, we've, Maria Campbell, Campbell Organizations: Financial, MassMutual Ventures, EQT Ventures Locations: London

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