Techmeme: Centific, an AI “data foundry” that works with businesses to develop, train, and deploy their AI models, raised a $60M Series A led by Granite Asia (Nicholas Gordon/Fortune)

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Maxwell Zeff / TechCrunch:

Google launches Gemini CLI, an agentic AI tool that lets developers make natural language requests in terminals by connecting Gemini models to local codebases — Google is launching a new agentic AI tool that will put its Gemini AI models closer to where developers are already coding.

More: The Keyword, The Economic Times, InfoWorld, The Verge, 9to5Google, The New Stack, Bloomberg, Android Central, The Indian Express, TestingCatalog, WinBuzzer, and Analytics India Magazine

X: @officiallogank, @natolambert, @addyosmani, @googleaidevs, and @googlecloudtech. LinkedIn: Allen Hutchison. Forums: r/googlecloud

Financial Times:

As Apple rolls out CarPlay Ultra, many carmakers are developing their own infotainment systems in hopes of generating more revenue from in-car services and data — CarPlay Ultra rollout comes as auto groups are introducing their own infotainment systems Apple is facing pushback …

More: Ars Technica, AppleInsider, 9to5Mac, PYMNTS.com, Macworld, MacRumors, Mashable, Cult of Mac, Redmond Pie, and Yahoo Finance

Forums: r/Polestar and MacRumors Forums

Google Developers Blog:

Imagen 4 is now available in the Gemini API and Google AI Studio, priced at $0.04/image or $0.06/image for the Ultra model that “precisely” follows instructions — We're thrilled to bring Imagen 4, our best text-to-image model yet, to paid preview in the Gemini API and for limited free testing in Google AI Studio.

More: Engadget, WinBuzzer, The Decoder, NERDS.xyz, TestingCatalog, and BleepingComputer

Samantha Subin / CNBC:

Bumble plans to lay off 30% of its workforce, or ~240 roles, and invest the up to $40M saved annually into new product and tech development; BMBL jumps 15%+ — Bumble shares rallied more than 26% Wednesday after the dating app company revealed in a securities filing that it intends to slash 30% of its workforce, or about 240 roles.

More: TechCrunch, Bloomberg, Silicon UK, and Reuters

X: @exec_sum. Forums: r/technology

Andrew Liszewski / The Verge:

Fairphone announces the €599 Fairphone 6, with a 6.31" 120Hz LTPO OLED, a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chip, 8GB of RAM, and enhanced modularity via 12 swappable parts — The repairable smartphone is now even more modular with new accessories that expand its functionality.

More: Android Central, Engadget, Android Headlines, NERDS.xyz, CNET, Murena, and GSMArena.com

Forums: Hacker News, r/gadgets, r/fairphone, r/Android, r/fairphone, r/gadgets, and r/technology

Business Insider:

Scale AI used Google Docs to track work for customers like Google, Meta, and xAI, and left confidential AI training documents accessible to anyone with the link — - Scale AI routinely uses public Google Docs for work with Google, Meta, and xAI. — BI reviewed thousands of files …

More: Computerworld, WinBuzzer, and New York Post

Bluesky: @romitmehta.com and @joemenn

X: @natolambert and @charlesrollet1

LinkedIn: Charles Rollet and Meghan Morris

Mike Rogoway / Oregonian:

Leaked memo: Intel will shut down its automotive business and lay off “most” employees working in the unit, the latest step in Intel's downsizing — Intel will shut down its small automotive business and lay off the majority of the workers in that segment, the latest step in the chipmaker's dramatic downsizing.

More: Tom's Hardware, CTech, CRN, Guru3D, Quartz, FlatpanelsHD, TechPowerUp, Silicon Valley Business …, and TipRanks Financial

Forums: r/technology, r/Polestar, r/hardware, r/intelstock, and Slashdot

Mark Lane / Financial Times:

How AI, AR, and VR tech developed for agriculture, from watering systems to robotic mowers, is trickling down to smaller-scale domestic growers and gardens — From laser scarecrows and solar-powered weeding robots to trees bred to capture more carbon, high-tech horticulture is in full germination

Yuliya Chernova / Wall Street Journal:

OpenRouter, which directs prompts to LLMs based on factors like cost and speed, raised $40M across a seed and Series A; source: the startup is valued at ~$500M — The startup, now valued at about $500 million, directs artificial-intelligence prompts to various large language models based on cost, speed and other factors

LinkedIn: Chris Clark

Sarah Kessler / New York Times:

A surge in AI-generated résumés is overwhelming employers, who are turning to AI screening and video interviewing tools to assess responses and rank candidates — Candidates are frustrated. Employers are overwhelmed. The problem? An untenable pile of applications …

More: Ars Technica, Futurism, VentureBeat, Tom's Guide, and Verdict

Bluesky: @carnage4life, @renouncehope, and @avielroshwald. Mastodon: @jalefkowit@vmst.io

X: @ty_geri, @rohanpaul_ai, @emollick, @marekposard, @ednewtonrex, and @sundeep

LinkedIn: Jeremy Schifeling, Lauren K. Fernández, and Jeff Pan

Forums: r/recruitinghell, Beehaw, and Ars OpenForum

Beatrice Nolan / Fortune:

London-based Metaview, which builds AI tools to automate hiring, like via interview notetaking and job description generation, raised a $35M Series B led by GV — Recruiting, which is heavy on admin, is ripe for disruption when it comes to developing AI tools.

More: FinSMEs, Tech.eu, and EU-Startups

Mike Wheatley / SiliconANGLE:

Andy Konwinski, a co-founder of Databricks and Perplexity AI, launches the nonprofit Laude Institute, self-funded with $100M for grants to AI projects and labs — Databricks Inc. co-founder and Apache Spark creator Andy Konwinski this week announced the creation of a new artificial intelligence …

More: Laude Institute, Laude Institute, Maginative, Observer, TechCrunch, and Fast Company

X: @andykonwinski, @andykonwinski, @jeffdean, @jpineau1, @laudeinstitute, @andykonwinski, @berkeleycdss, @andykonwinski, and @andykonwinski

Nicholas Gordon / Fortune:

Centific, an AI “data foundry” that works with businesses to develop, train, and deploy their AI models, raised a $60M Series A led by Granite Asia — “The future is not just in North America, it's global,” Centific CEO Venkat Rangapuram told Fortune. — COURTESY OF CENTIFIC

More: Centific Global Solutions …

FinSMEs:

Paraform, which operates a hiring marketplace with AI-powered candidate relationship management and other tools, raised a $20M Series A led by Felicis Ventures — Paraform, a San Francisco, CA-based marketplace built for elite recruiters, raised $20M in Series A funding.

More: Forbes and Pulse 2.0

X: @paraformtalent, @0xjohnkim, @felicis, and @jeffreyw5000

Electronic Frontier Foundation:

Analysis: of the 750 data brokers registered in at least one US state, many haven't registered in states with transparency laws, undermining data deletion tools — Written in collaboration with Privacy Rights Clearinghouse — Hundreds of data brokers have not registered with state consumer protection agencies.

Forums: r/technology

Jocelyn Gecker / Associated Press:

Gallup: ~60% of 2,232 teachers at US K-12 public schools say they used AI tools in the 2024-25 school year; regulars estimate weekly time savings of 5.9 hours — For her 6th grade honors class, math teacher Ana Sepúlveda wanted to make geometry fun.

More: Thurrott, The Decoder, Gallup, and Gallup

Zac Bowden / Windows Central:

Microsoft makes Windows 10's extended security updates free for an extra year for users who sync PC settings via a Microsoft Account and the Windows Backup app — Windows 10 users will have the option to continue receiving security updates for free beyond October 2025 …

More: Windows Blog, The Verge, Ars Technica, Microsoft Learn, BleepingComputer, The Register, Computerworld, CyberInsider, Windows Report, Financial Express, Beebom, Tech Times, The Hacker News, How-To Geek, Laptop Mag, OSnews, PCWorld, Thurrott, CRN, and Engadget

Bluesky: @tomwarren.co.uk, @miketoole.com, and @radiodeadair.com

Forums: r/MicrosoftRewards, r/technews, r/windows, r/Windows10, and r/technology

Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:

CareerBuilder + Monster, which once dominated online recruitment, files for Chapter 11 and agrees to sell its job board to JobGet and sell its other businesses — CareerBuilder + Monster, which once dominated the online recruitment industry, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection …

More: CNN, Washington Post, Chicago Sun Times, Entrepreneur, Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Fox Business, and Bloomberg

Bluesky: @tcpeter, @harrymccracken.com, and @thekenyeung. LinkedIn: Sarah-Jayne Martin. Forums: Hacker News

Dina Bass / Bloomberg:

Xbow, whose AI tool automates penetration testing and topped HackerOne's US leaderboard for reporting security flaws, raised a $75M Series B led by Altimeter — Xbow, the startup behind a highly ranked hacking security tool, is raising $75 million — A hacker named Xbow has topped …

More: XBOW, Help Net Security, XBOW, and PCMag

Bluesky: @moyix.net. LinkedIn: Dina Bass. Forums: Hacker News

Reuters:

New Zealand-based Xero, which offers accounting software for small businesses, agrees to acquire payments software company Melio in a $2.5B+ cash-and-stock deal — New Zealand accounting software giant Xero agreed to buy New York payments provider Melio for $2.5 billion, the companies said on Wednesday …

More: The Information, PYMNTS.com, Xero, Arabian Business, The Paypers, RNZ, thepost.co.nz, NZ Herald, Reuters, MarketWatch, and Bloomberg

LinkedIn: Melio and Xero

Arabelle Sicardi / The Verge:

How AI is changing perfume creation, as startup Osmo promises 48-hour sample turnarounds and conglomerates DSM-Firmenich, Givaudan, IFF, and Symrise embrace it — AI is rapidly changing how fragrance is created — and who gets credit. Some say it's innovation. Others call it erasure.

Jordan Novet / CNBC:

Data management software vendor Rubrik agrees to acquire Predibase, which helps with deploying AI models; a source says Rubrik intends to pay $100M to $500M — Data management software vendor Rubrik said Wednesday that it's buying Predibase, a startup that helps with the deployment of artificial intelligence models.

More: Barron's Online, Greylock, MarketWatch, and Rubrik. LinkedIn: Varun Grover

Bloomberg:

French payments group Worldline's stock drops 20%+ after articles by European journalism network EIC alleged that the company covered up its customers' fraud — Worldline SA shares fell by more than a fifth on Wednesday, wiping out around €300 million ($350 million) …

More: PYMNTS.com, Capital Brief, and Reuters

Cate Lawrence / Tech.eu:

Paris-based Zama, which is developing fully homomorphic encryption tech for blockchain and AI apps, raised a $57M Series B at a $1B+ valuation — With GPU scaling, chip development, and Ethereum-compatible tools, Zama is turning FHE from theoretical to practical at scale.

Sana Pashankar / Bloomberg:

Colorado-based Maxar Intelligence debuts Sentry, an AI tool that helps its satellites monitor cities, shipyards, airports, and other sites for unusual patterns — In the days after President Donald Trump announced the US had “completely and totally obliterated” nuclear sites in Iran …

More: SpaceNews

Hilary Milnes / Vogue Business:

Daydream, which raised a $50M seed in June 2024 to build a generative AI shopping agent for fashion, launches in beta, with an app expected later this summer — Founder Julie Bornstein raised $50 million last year to create the ultimate AI shopping experience. Today, it launches in beta.

More: WWD, TechCrunch, Fortune, Fast Company, The Business of Fashion, and Daydream

LinkedIn: Julie Bornstein and Daydream

Wency Chen / South China Morning Post:

In a letter to staff, CEO Eddie Wu says Alibaba is merging its food delivery platform Ele.me and online travel agency Fliggy into its core e-commerce business — CEO Eddie Wu said the restructuring ‘marks a strategic upgrade from an e-commerce platform to a comprehensive consumer platform’

More: TechNode, Reuters, Benzinga, MarketWatch, and Nikkei Asia

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