Google to offer personal “smart checking” bank accounts
Google has announced plans to offer “smart checking” accounts to consumers, partnering with banks and credit unions in the US. The move will see Google join other tech giants moving to provide financial services, according to BBC News. Launched through Google Pay, the services will allow the use of Google’s analytics tools for conventional bank accounts. […]
Balderton Capital raises $400 million to invest in European tech startups
London-based venture capital firm Balderton Capital has raised $400 million for its seventh investment fund to back Europe’s tech startups. The fund will focus on early, Series A funding for enterprise software companies, health tech, and “deep-tech” such as artificial intelligence, according to Bloomberg. Earlier Balderton funds concentrated on financial technology and other areas, but the […]
E-scooter startup Voi raises $85 million in Series B funding round
Swedish e-scooter startup Voi has raised $85 million in a Series B funding round, to expand their e-scooter and e-bike network in Europe, according to TechCrunch. First launched in 2018, the company provides services in 38 cities in ten European countries, offering e-scooter and e-bike sharing. They say they have 4 million registered users and […]
Airbnb will now verify all of its listings, in sweeping policy shift
Airbnb will verify every one of its rental listings by the end of 2020, in a reversal of long-standing company policy, according to The Verge. For over a decade, the home-sharing platform has relied on agreements between guests and their hosts. The move follows a fatal mass shooting at one of its rentals this month, as […]
UK startup Medopad raises $25 million in Series B funding, led by Bayer
The UK-based startup Medopad has raised $25 million in a Series B funding round led by the pharmaceutical giant Bayer, to predict and track the development of chronic diseases using big data analysis, according to TechCrunch and VentureBeat. With AI analysis of vast sets of data from wearable and mobile devices, Medopad’s app tracks “biomarkers” in patients that […]
Google is set to acquire FitBit for $2.1 billion
Google is planning to purchase the wearable fitness tracker company FitBit for $2.1 billion, according to BBC News. With the acquisition, Google will now compete directly with Apple and other wearable technology companies, and will gain access to detailed health data from millions of FitBit users. “With Google’s resources and global platform, Fitbit will be able […]
UK agtech startup WeFarm raises $13m in Series A funding round
London based startup WeFarm has raised $13 million in a Series A funding round, to build its network of smallholder farmers, agricultural suppliers, services, and informational resources, according to TechCrunch and EU-startups.com. Globally, there are more than one billion people involved in smallholder farming, making it the world’s largest industry. Together, these farmers grow roughly 70 percent […]
Volkswagen aims to surpass Tesla with expanded production of electric cars
Volkswagen is stepping up electric car production to compete with Tesla, aiming to produce roughly 1 million electric vehicles by 2022, according to Reuters. Production will be concentrated at two factories in China, with a combined production capacity of 600,000 vehicles. Tesla is building its own new plant in Shanghai, as part of an effort to […]
Macron nominates Atos CEO Thierry Breton for EU commissioner
French President Emmanuel Macron has nominated Thierry Breton, former finance minister and current chief of technology company Atos, as the nation’s EU commissioner, according to The Independent. Macron’s initial pick for commissioner, Sylvie Goulard, was rejected by the European Parliament, which must approve the nominations. Breton could be well-positioned to gain the approval of the conservative European […]
De La Rue’s Bid to Return to Circulation
De La Rue, the British firm which has printed roughly a third of all banknotes currently in circulation, has recently come to be better known for its long list of scandals. Last year, the company was left red-faced after it was drastically underbid by European competitor Gemalto to produce UK passports; just months ago, the […]