A day after people started noticing Facebook was now suggesting business to chat with while in Messenger, the social network officially announced a suite of tools and updates designed to help Facebook users better connect with the businesses using its platform. As part of these changes, businesses will now see their Facebook Page usernames being… Continue reading Facebook pushes businesses to Messenger with new tools for Pages, including Snapchat-like scannable codes
Author: Robert E. Pascual
E-commerce search startup Twiggle scores $12.5M Series A led by Naspers
Search engines on large e-commerce sites often spit up a lot of results, which is great if you want to browse, but otherwise annoying. Twiggle thinks it has the solution. Internet conglomerate Naspers agrees, because it has led the Tel Aviv-based startup’s $12.5 million Series A. Yahoo Japan, State of Mind Ventures (a returning investor),… Continue reading E-commerce search startup Twiggle scores $12.5M Series A led by Naspers
Rackspace launches integrated software and hardware OpenStack solution for any data center
Rackspace was one of the founders of the OpenStack cloud computing platform project (together with NASA) and the company has long offered enterprises the option to manage their private OpenStack deployments for them. For the most part, that meant those companies had to build their own hardware and infrastructure, though — and incur the up-front… Continue reading Rackspace launches integrated software and hardware OpenStack solution for any data center
Karamba Security raises $2.5 million to keep hackers out of connected cars
GPS navigation. Entertainment systems that offer streaming music. Bluetooth door locks. As vehicles are increasingly connected to the internet, they also become vulnerable to hacker attacks. Now, a Tel Aviv-based startup called Karamba Security has raised $2.5 million in seed funding to bring cybersecurity solutions to the automotive industry. According to Karamba co-founder David Barzilai,… Continue reading Karamba Security raises $2.5 million to keep hackers out of connected cars
OpenStack’s Mitaka release focuses on manageability and user experience
The OpenStack Foundation today launched Mitaka, the thirteenth release of its open source enterprise cloud platform. In many ways, this new release shows the growing maturity of the project, which was originally incubated in 2010 by Rackspace and NASA. Instead of lots of major feature additions (though there are still plenty of those), the focus… Continue reading OpenStack’s Mitaka release focuses on manageability and user experience
RiskRecon scores $3 million seed round to provide objective cloud vendor security assessments
RiskRecon, a startup that helps companies make objective security assessments of third-party cloud vendors, emerged from stealth today with a $3 million seed round led by General Catalyst. Several unnamed private investors also participated in the round. Jeff Martin of TD Bank Group was also named to the company’s board today. RiskRecon leverages information that is… Continue reading RiskRecon scores $3 million seed round to provide objective cloud vendor security assessments
Apple will sell Apple Watch Hermès bands separately
If you’re like me, you bought an Apple Watch before Apple announced the Hermès special edition in September, but you’ve fallen in love with the Apple Watch Hermès since then — yes, the Hermès Watch looks awesome. And yet, it’s hard to justify buying a new Apple Watch if you already have one. Apple will… Continue reading Apple will sell Apple Watch Hermès bands separately
Clutter on-demand storage services packs up $20 million from Sequoia
Clutter, the on-demand storage space looking to take on the likes of MakeSpace, has today announced the close of a $20 million Series B round led by Sequoia Capital. Sequoia also led a $9 million Series A for Clutter back in October. The premise behind Clutter is simple. Almost everyone that lives in a metropolitan… Continue reading Clutter on-demand storage services packs up $20 million from Sequoia
Android squeezes iOS’ sales growth in China
The latest smartphone sales data from Kantar Worldpanel suggests Apple had a tougher time shifting its devices over Chinese New Year than in prior years, with the market watcher noting no growth in marketshare for iOS over the three months ending February 2016 — the first time since August 2014 that Apple has not grown share in urban… Continue reading Android squeezes iOS’ sales growth in China
Customer communication startup Intercom raises $50M
Intercom, a startup helping businesses talk to their customers, has raised an additional $50 million in funding. Intercom’s products cover everything from website chat to marketing to customer support. When the company raised funding last year, co-founder and CEO Eoghan McCabe (pictured above) said integration is one of the big elements of the company’s strategy… Continue reading Customer communication startup Intercom raises $50M