Klarna and Stripe investor Atomico launches fifth tech fund at $820m February 18, 2020 London venture capital giant Atomico has today revealed the close of its fifth fund, aimed at young European tech startups, at $820m (£630.2m). The investor has previously backed global companies such as Klarna, Stripe and Supercell, as well as British success stories such as Farmdrop, Habito and Graphcore. The closure of Atomico V brings the [...]
The privacy paradox: How we got trapped in a data dystopia February 18, 2020 One of the less encouraging reports to come out of the tech world this month was that Facebook, everyone’s favourite villainous corporation, knew very well about the colossal security flaw that let hackers rob personal data from millions of users long before the breach itself. Facebook employees have said that they felt “guilt” and “hurt” [...]
Apple says it will miss revenue targets because of coronavirus impact February 17, 2020 Apple said today it will not meet its quarterly revenue guidance due to the coronavirus outbreak which has affected production and demand in China. The company had previously forecast $63bn (£48bn) to $67bn in revenue for the quarter ending in March. It did not give a revised forecast today. Apple said that despite the fact [...]
City grandee Michael Spencer among losers after collapse of startup Laundrapp February 17, 2020 City grandee Michael Spencer has lost millions after a laundry startup he was a key backer for went into administration on Friday. Laundrapp was sold in a pre-pack administration on Friday after running out of cash. Spencer’s private investment group IPGL was a cornerstone investor in a £4m 2015 funding round in Laundrapp in which [...]
Jeff Bezos launches climate change fund with $10bn donation February 17, 2020 Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos has revealed he will be committing $10bn to the cause of fighting climate change, with the launch of the Bezos Earth Fund. The billionaire said in an Instagram post the fund would be used to provide grants to non-governmental organisations (NGOs), scientists and activists — or “any effort [...]
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales on Nintendo Switch review: Gwent is back and it’s never felt so good February 17, 2020 Gwent, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. The Witcher 3 is one of the truly great open-world games, mind-boggling in its scope and masterful in its execution. But there were times when it felt like elaborate padding around the in-game pastime, Gwent. I clocked over 300 hours in this [...]
Former Amazon executive admits turning off Alexa for ‘private moments’ February 17, 2020 A former senior Amazon executive has admitted to turning off his Alexa whenever he wants some privacy due to concerns the company was listening in on his conversations. Robert Frederick, who served as senior manager of Amazon Web Services, told BBC Panorama: “I don’t want certain conversations to be heard by humans. Conversations that I [...]
Trump issues fresh warning over ‘untrustworthy’ Huawei February 17, 2020 US President Donald Trump has launched a fresh attack on Huawei, warning his country could cut intelligence sharing with any ally that cooperates with the Chinese tech firm. Trump told the US ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell that “any nation who chooses to use an untrustworthy 5G vendor will jeopardise our ability to share intelligence [...]
Keep an eye on data: a chat with Duco’s founder about the future of fintech in Britain February 17, 2020 When asked to narrate their journeys from startup to scaleup, entrepreneurs tend to fall into two camps. There are those for whom the travails of growth are a badge of honour: no 20-hour day, unconquerable challenge or unfulfilled investment pledge has been forgotten. Others display an insouciance, as though turning a light-bulb moment into a [...]
Research parks can help turn the light-bulb moment of science into business success February 17, 2020 Based on 35 years of experience, I am a proponent of the idea that “place matters”. Businesses benefit from being located in an environment willing to share the risks involved in fostering entrepreneurship. That’s why the global research and science park movement has taken off. It is designed to support the clustering of enterprises to [...]