Tech Meme

Vishal Chawla / The Block: SDNY releases documents in which an ex-SEC director suggested ether and bitcoin were not securities in 2018, which crypto advocates say undermines the SEC  —  David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images  — Certain documents related to former SEC director William Hinman have been released in the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple Labs. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Financial Times: Saudi Arabia’s Savvy Games Group has spent ~$8B of its $38B war chest acquiring and building stakes in gaming companies globally in the past 18 months  —  Savvy shells out $8bn on deals in 18 months in rapid push to diversify revenues and acquire soft power Lees verder op Tech Meme

Financial Times: Investor letter: Insight Partners slashes the $20B target for its latest fund to $15B, after raising just $2B since June 2022, citing a “great reset in tech”  —  New York-based venture capital firm said it will scale back the pace of its dealmaking as valuations have slumped Lees verder op Tech Meme

Allison Johnson / The Verge: Nothing plans to release the Nothing Phone 2 on July 11, offering a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chip and bigger battery, widely available in the US  —  We knew that the Nothing Phone 2 would arrive next month, and now we have a precise date: July 11th, a day shy of the Phone 1’s first birthday. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Mark Savage / BBC: Paul McCartney says AI helped “extricate” John Lennon’s voice from an old demo to complete what he calls “the final Beatles record”, set for release in 2023  —  Sir Paul McCartney says he has employed artificial intelligence to help create what he calls “the final Beatles record”. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Biz Carson / Bloomberg: In a first, Larry Ellison passes Bill Gates to become the world’s fourth-richest person with a $129.8B net worth; ORCL has risen 42% in 2023 on the AI boom  —  The optimism around artificial intelligence boosted both Oracle Corp.’s stock — and founder Larry Ellison’s net worth — to record highs on Monday. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Financial Times: A look at the global network of subsea internet cables, dominated by companies from France, the US, and Japan, as China circumvents US curbs to build its own  —  Nearly 1.4mn kilometres of metal-encased fibre criss-crosses the world’s oceans, speeding internet traffic seamlessly around the globe. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Krystal Hu / Reuters: Sources: SoftBank plans a new round of Vision Fund layoffs, impacting up to 30% of the staff at the unit; Vision Fund had 349 staff at the end of March 2023  —  SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) is planning a fresh round of layoffs at its Vision Fund investment arm, two people familiar with the matter said … Lees verder op Tech Meme

Max Read / New York Times: How Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast, became a viral sensation for his absurd acts of altruism and pitching subscribing as an act of charity, sometimes literally  —  Jimmy Donaldson, a.k.a. MrBeast, has become a viral sensation for his absurd acts of altruism.  Why do so many people think he’s evil? Lees verder op Tech Meme

Mark Bergen / Bloomberg: PitchBook: the UK and Ireland accounted for ~28% of VC deals in Europe and Israel in Q1 2023, down from over 34% in 2018, while France and the Nordics rose  —  This year did not begin well for technology in the UK.  Venture financing evaporated.  Companies cut staff and tightened belts. Lees verder op Tech Meme